Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Shengxuan Xia, Xiang Zhai, Lingling Wang, Yuanjiang Xiang, Shuangchun Wen
Summary: In this paper, a theoretical scheme is proposed to achieve unidirectional odd-to-even order plasmonically induced transparency (PIT) by establishing a model with two layers of periodic graphene nanoribbons. The underlying physical principles are uncovered by predicting the positions of phase difference, and the proposed PIT concept is demonstrated to have good robustness against both ribbon width and relative ribbon positions.
Article
Physics, Applied
Mohsin Ijaz, Hao Zhang, Sanutep V. Chan, Robert Holt, Nathaniel J. L. K. Davis, Richard J. Blaikie
Summary: In this work, a plasmonic resonator was coupled with semiconductor quantum dots (QDs) to enhance photoelectrocatalytic water splitting for hydrogen (H-2) production. The plasmonic enhancement in the absorption/emission of QDs was observed using optical spectroscopy. The resonant excitation of QDs has been plasmonically enhanced, contributing to enhanced photoelectrocatalysis. These findings lay the foundation for efficient solar-to-H-2 conversion.
APPLIED PHYSICS LETTERS
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Wei Zhang, Tianxing Zheng, Bin Ai, Panpan Gu, Yuduo Guan, Yu Wang, Zhiyuan Zhao, Gang Zhang
Summary: Au-P-Au-coupled gold nanoparticle platforms with multiple nanogaps were fabricated using nanoskiving and polymer-assisted assembly. The platform showed strong electric field enhancement due to the confinement of incident light, leading to significant surface-enhanced Raman scattering performance and sensitive detection of glucose.
APPLIED SURFACE SCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Analytical
Samir Adhikari, Emmanuel K. Ampadu, Minjun Kim, Daegwon Noh, Eunsoon Oh, Donghan Lee
Summary: Using surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) techniques with plasmonic nanogap substrates, trace amounts of nitro-based compounds such as TNT, RDX, and PETN were effectively detected down to picomolar concentrations in solution. This method offers a powerful approach for identifying different explosives based on the variations in SERS spectra observed.
Article
Optics
Weihua Wang, Rui Zhang
Summary: Plasmonically induced transparency (PIT) offers an efficient way to manipulate light-matter interaction. In this study, we present an alternative scheme to achieve PIT in coupled graphene nanodisks through mechanical folding. The PIT can be tuned by adjusting the folding parameters and electrostatic gating.
Article
Chemistry, Analytical
Hao Wu, Yangxi Zhang, Zhi-Zheng Wang, A. Ping Zhang
Summary: Infrared absorption-spectroscopy (IRAS) is a useful tool for identifying and characterizing molecular species. Plasmonic substrates have greatly enhanced the performance of IRAS technology for high-sensitivity biochemical detection, but their fabrication is still challenging and costly. This study presents a precision photoreduction and replacement reaction combined technology to directly print plasmonic substrates for PEIRAS biodetection. Experimental results show that the printed plasmonic substrate can detect bovine serum albumin at a concentration level of 10 nM, indicating its promising application in IRAS biodetection.
SENSORS AND ACTUATORS B-CHEMICAL
(2024)
Article
Chemistry, Analytical
Niraja Kurapati, Donald C. Janda, Ryan J. Balla, Siao-Han Huang, Kevin C. Leonard, Shigeru Amemiya
Summary: In this study, the mechanism of adsorption-coupled electron-transfer (ACET) reactions is experimentally identified for the first time. The non-concerted mechanism mediates outer-sphere reduction and adsorption separately when the reductant adsorption is reversible. By using the transient voltammetric mode of nanoscale scanning electrochemical microscopy (SECM), the non-concerted mechanism for ferrocene derivatives adsorbed at highly oriented pyrolytic graphite is revealed.
ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY
(2022)
Article
Optics
Shenyou Zhao, Zelio Fusco, Fiona J. Beck
Summary: By coupling a nanoparticle array with an optical cavity system, the absorption in small nanoparticles can be enhanced and controlled, leading to strong and tunable absorption resonances. By varying the cavity length or modifying the nanoparticle positions, the characteristics of the absorption spectra can be manipulated, resulting in narrow-linewidth resonances. This work provides prescriptive guidelines for the design of efficient plasmonically enhanced hot electron devices.
Article
Optics
Jingyu Zhang, Hengli Feng, Chang Liu, Dongchao Fang, Jincheng Wang, Lehui Wang, Zuoxin Zhang, Lingling Ran, Yang Gao
Summary: In this paper, a side-coupled triangle cavity in a plasmonic waveguide structure is proposed, and its transmission characteristics and sensitivity are studied through numerical analysis. The results show that this structure has high sensitivity and tunability, which can be applied in sensors and temperature sensors.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Yuancai Ge, Ying Yang, Yajie Zhu, Meiling Yuan, Liangbin Sun, Danfeng Jiang, Xiaohu Liu, Qingwen Zhang, Jinyi Zhang, Yi Wang
Summary: A hybrid substrate for surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) is fabricated, which combines localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR), charge transfer (CT) resonance, and molecular resonance. The substrate utilizes exfoliated 2D TiS2 nanosheets to accelerate CT and a concave gold array for strong electromagnetic enhancement. By adjusting the LSPR intensity near the gold layer, the substrate achieves maximum SERS enhancement. The hybrid substrate demonstrates excellent performance in detecting low concentrations of methylene blue and monitoring curcumin in serum and urine.
Article
Chemistry, Physical
P. Logesh Kumar, Sumesh P. Thampi, Madivala G. Basavaraj
Summary: The coffee ring effect is a result of particles migrating and depositing at the three-phase contact line during the drying of particle-laden drops. This spatial distribution of particles shows azimuthal symmetry, which can be disrupted by manipulating the inclination of the substrate using gravity. The degree of asymmetry in particle deposition is influenced by particle size, substrate wettability, and the inclination angle of the substrate, indicating the presence of additional particle transport mechanisms during drying.
Article
Mathematics
Tian Ji, Haoran Wei, Jun Wang, Shaoqing Tian, Yi Yao, Shukai Hu
Summary: This study improves the search capabilities and robustness of industrial robotic control systems by refining the beetle antennae optimization (BAO) algorithm. Compared to traditional PID control, beetle antennae search algorithm (BAS), and adaptive weighted particle swarm optimization (PSO), the enhanced BAO algorithm shows significant advantages in reducing errors, overshoot, and adjustment time, with a 60% improvement in optimization performance. This research provides valuable insights into the practical application of the refined BAO algorithm in industrial robotic control systems.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Matias Mugnaini, Dhruv Mehrotra, Federico Davoine, Varun Sharma, Ana Rita Mendes, Ben Gerhardt, Miguel Concha-Miranda, Michael Brecht, Ann M. Clemens
Summary: Little is known about how mammals sense wind. However, recent research has shown that rats can detect airflow using their whiskers. By tracking the movement of whisker tips in rats, researchers discovered that increased airflow led to greater movement of the whiskers, particularly the long supra-orbital whisker. The unique biomechanical properties of this whisker, such as its position, bending, length, and diameter, contribute to its exceptional sensitivity to airflow. Micro-CT imaging also revealed specialized structures in wind-sensitive whiskers that facilitate omnidirectional sensing. The cortical representation of the supra-orbital whisker showed stronger responses to wind stimuli compared to other whisker representations. Trimming wind-responsive whiskers and targeting the follicles with lidocaine injections both resulted in diminished turning responses to airflow, highlighting the functional significance of these whiskers in airflow sensing.
Review
Chemistry, Physical
Christian M. Pichler
Summary: The chemical industry is actively promoting the use of alternative feedstocks to replace fossil resources and implementing more sustainable production routes. Waste feedstocks are of particular interest due to the principles of circular economy. However, waste feedstocks have complex structures, making it challenging to convert them into defined chemical products. Coupled catalytic processes are a viable solution to enable the conversion of waste feedstocks into value-added chemicals. This review discusses different strategies for converting waste substrates into value-added chemicals using process couplings, including electrochemical reactions. Such coupled processes are of great importance in transforming the chemical industry towards sustainable processes based on the principles of circular economy. Converting waste substrates into value-added chemical products is a promising pathway for implementing circular economy principles and replacing fossil feedstocks in the chemical industry.
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Joanna Grzyb, Katarzyna Walczewska-Szewc, Jakub Slawski, Martyna Trojnar
Summary: This study investigated the experimental and computational characterization of self-assembled antennae built using CdTe colloidal quantum dots (QDs), providing efficient excitation of phycocyanine (PC) or phycobilisomes (PBSs). The self-assembled QD clusters formed by electrostatic interactions may enable energy transfer between nanoparticles at longer distances than the Forster radius. The study suggests potential applications of these self-assembled systems in artificial light-harvesting systems.
PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY CHEMICAL PHYSICS
(2021)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Jiabao Xu, Xiaofei Yi, Guilan Jin, Di Peng, Gaoya Fan, Xiaogang Xu, Xin Chen, Huabing Yin, Jonathan M. Cooper, Wei E. Huang
Summary: Accurate and rapid identification of infectious bacteria is crucial in medicine. Raman microspectroscopy shows potential in label-free identification at the single-cell level. In this study, machine learning methods and data processing techniques were used to achieve high-accuracy bacterial identification, opening up new possibilities for high-speed Raman microspectroscopic clinical diagnostics.
ACS CHEMICAL BIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Gaolian Xu, Julien Reboud, Yunfei Guo, Hao Yang, Hongchen Gu, Chunhai Fan, Xiaohua Qian, Jonathan M. Cooper
Summary: Accelerating the design of nucleic acid amplification methods is challenging, but necessary for diagnosing diseases. This study presents a generalizable isothermal nucleic acid amplification methodology that can be applied to clinical settings, allowing for the detection of short miRNAs and difficult pathogenic targets.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Yang Liu, Filipe Pinto, Xinyi Wan, Zhugen Yang, Shuguang Peng, Mengxi Li, Jonathan M. Cooper, Zhen Xie, Christopher E. French, Baojun Wang
Summary: This study reveals the programmability of crRNA-tracrRNA hybridization in type II CRISPR systems. By reprogramming the crRNA-tracrRNA interactions, the researchers demonstrate the design of orthogonal cellular computing devices and the hijacking of endogenous small RNAs/mRNAs as crRNAs. Furthermore, they demonstrate the use of re-engineered gRNA pairings as RNA sensors for monitoring gene transcription or detecting SARS-CoV-2 RNA.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Yajuan Dong, Yongjuan Zhao, Shenwei Li, Zhenzhou Wan, Renfei Lu, Xianguang Yang, Guoying Yu, Julien Reboud, Jonathan M. Cooper, Zhengan Tian, Chiyu Zhang
Summary: This study reports a variant-tolerant diagnostic test for SARS-CoV-2 using loop-mediated isothermal nucleic acid amplification (LAMP) assay. The test shows excellent clinical performance and can detect a wide range of variants.
Article
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Han Cui, Andrew Glidle, Jonathan M. Cooper
Summary: This study demonstrates the use of stimulated Raman scattering technique to measure molecular diffusion in soft tissue samples, overcoming the issues of weak signal and fluorescence interference associated with spontaneous Raman spectroscopy. The results show that mass transport follows diffusion process within hydrogel matrices, but more complex mechanisms exist within tissues.
ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES
(2022)
Article
Physics, Applied
P. Yambangyang, R. Wilson, J. Reboud, J. M. Cooper, A. Demcenko
Summary: This study proposes a nondestructive nonlinear ultrasonic evaluation technique for detecting the physical aging of amorphous polymers in situ without needing to remove materials. The results show that the physical aging of the polymer can be described by the Arrhenius equation.
APPLIED PHYSICS LETTERS
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Jiajia Zou, Ashley C. Stammers, Andrea Taladriz-Sender, Jamie M. Withers, Iain Christie, Marina Santana Vega, Badri L. Aekbote, William J. Peveler, David A. Rusling, Glenn A. Burley, Alasdair W. Clark
Summary: An orthogonal, noncovalent approach is presented for the assembly of higher-order DNA origami nanostructures. By incorporating perfluorinated tags into DNA origami tiles, their hierarchical assembly is controlled via fluorous-directed recognition. This integrated catch-and-latch approach combining fluorous effect with base-pairing specificity enables increased assembly efficiency and requires fewer DNA sequences, providing a cheap and efficient means for producing discrete superstructures in DNA nanotechnology.
Article
Engineering, Biomedical
Yao Ge, Ahmad Taha, Syed Aziz Shah, Kia Dashtipour, Shuyuan Zhu, Jonathan Cooper, Qammer H. Abbasi, Muhammad Ali Imran
Summary: WiFi sensing has gained significant attention as a potential mechanism for remote monitoring of the aging population without deploying devices on users' bodies. It has the potential to detect critical events such as falls, sleep disturbances, and respiratory disorders. Unlike other sensing methods, WiFi technology is easy to implement and unobtrusive. This paper reviews the current state-of-the-art research on WiFi-based sensing and discusses its healthcare applications and open research challenges.
IEEE REVIEWS IN BIOMEDICAL ENGINEERING
(2023)
Correction
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Gaolian Xu, Hao Yang, Jiani Qiu, Julien Reboud, Linqing Zhen, Wei Ren, Hong Xu, Jonathan M. Cooper, Hongchen Gu
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Gaolian Xu, Hao Yang, Jiani Qiu, Julien Reboud, Linqing Zhen, Wei Ren, Hong Xu, Jonathan M. M. Cooper, Hongchen Gu
Summary: The authors propose a method called STEM-PCR for rapid and facile detection of specific nucleic acid modifications. This method utilizes a simple and widely accessible PCR-based workflow, and exhibits sensitivity 20 times greater than current gold-standard techniques by using a bisulfite-free process. They successfully demonstrate the clinical applicability of this method by detecting methylation of SEPTIN9 and SFRP2 genes, which are key biomarkers in tumor prognosis and diagnosis.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Katie McGuire, Suhang He, Jennifer Gracie, Charlotte Bryson, Dazhong Zheng, Alasdair W. Clark, Jesko Koehnke, David J. France, Werner M. Nau, Tung-Chun Lee, William J. Peveler
Summary: This study demonstrates that aggregation of fluorescent quantum dot (QD) linked with cucurbiturils (CBs) can be broken-up by including guest molecules, while retaining CBs adsorbed on the surface. At the same time, the QD surface can be modified by the functional tail of the guest, enabling a non-covalent, click-like modification of nanoparticles in aqueous solution. This approach provides divergent routes for nano-architectures with rich functionalities for theranostics and photonics in aqueous systems.
Article
Engineering, Electrical & Electronic
Yao Ge, Wenda Li, Muhammad Farooq, Adnan Qayyum, Jingyan Wang, Zikang Chen, Jonathan Cooper, Muhammad Ali Imran, Qammer H. Abbasi
Summary: The LoGait system utilizes LoRa signals to recognize gait in indoor environments, overcoming challenges such as video quality, occlusion, and privacy concerns. It enables a larger sensing range of gait recognition compared to WiFi-based systems.
IEEE SENSORS JOURNAL
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Rodrigo Ibarra-Chavez, Julien Reboud, Jose R. Penades, Jonathan M. Cooper
Summary: Phage-inducible chromosomal islands (PICIs) are genetic constructs that repurpose phage components to mobilize and spread. They have been used as antibacterial drones and a user-friendly diagnostic system based on PICI transduction has been developed for selective enrichment and detection of Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus. This approach enables visual sensing of viable pathogens only, extending diagnostic sensing mechanisms beyond conventional strategies.
Article
Biochemical Research Methods
Yunus Aslan, Olivia McGleish, Julien Reboud, Jonathan M. Cooper
Summary: This study presents an alignment-free spatial hydrophilic PDMS patterning technique for the generation of double emulsion droplets. The method successfully produces reliable and reproducible water-in-oil-in-water droplet emulsions without the need for complex processing steps. It can be applied to various fields, further expanding the applications of microfluidic techniques.
Article
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Han Cui, Andrew Glidle, Jonathan M. Cooper
Summary: This study investigates the molecular diffusion across biomaterial interfaces using stimulated Raman scattering technique. The results show that background fluorescence can interfere with the signal when using spontaneous Raman spectroscopy. By using stimulated Raman scattering, measurements with high signal-to-noise ratios and minimal fluorescence interference can be obtained. The study also reveals the existence of more complex diffusion mechanisms in tissues.
ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES
(2022)
