Phys.org June 8, 2023 Researchers in China used gallium indium alloy (EGaIn) to initiate the polymerization and simultaneously serve as flexible fillers to construct a super-stretchable and self-healing liquid metal/polyvinyl alcohol/p(acrylamide-co-octadecyl methacrylate) (liquid metal/PVA/P(AAm-co-SMA)) double network hydrogel (LM hydrogel). These together with the ionic coordination and hydrogen bonds between polymer networks (multiple physical cross-links) made LM hydrogel super-stretchable, tough, notch resistant, and self-healing. The LM hydrogel exhibited sensitive strain sensing behavior, allowing human–computer interaction to achieve motion recognition and health monitoring because of the photothermal effect and low infrared emissivity of EGaIn. The LM hydrogel showed potential in infrared camouflage. […]
Tag Archives: S&T China
Carbon-based stimuli-responsive nanomaterials: Their classification and application
Phys.org June 5, 2023 With the development of material synthesis technology, carbon-based nanomaterials can be functionalized and used in various fields such as energy, environment, and biomedicine. Researchers in China applied carbon-based nanomaterials to different disease treatments based on their stimulus-response properties. They categorized them into carbon nanotubes, carbon nanospheres, and carbon nanofibers according to their morphology. They discussed the materials’’ applications in probes, bioimaging, tumor therapy, and other fields. They addressed the advantages and disadvantages of carbon-based stimuli-responsive nanomaterials and discussed their future perspective… read more. Open Access TECHNICAL ARTICLE
Revolutionizing optical control with topological edge states
Phys.org June 6, 2023 It is highly desirable to be able to control topological edge states (TES) transport in photonic implementations. Enhancing the coupling between the TESs in a finite-size optical lattice can exchange light energy between the boundaries of a topological lattice, hence facilitating the flexible control of TES transport. However, existing strategies have paid little attention to enhancing the coupling effects between the TESs through the finite-size effect. Researchers in China established a bridge linking the interaction between the TESs in a finite-size optical lattice using the Landau–Zener model to provide an alternative way to modulate/control the transport […]
China is Making the Largest Ocean Uranium Extraction Testing Facility
Next Big Future May 23, 2023 China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) will create a “world-leading” seawater uranium extraction technology development centre which is said to be the largest such test platform to be built in the South China Sea. The platform will form “two centres, one platform” seawater uranium extraction scientific research base together with a research and test centre and an international exchange centre. Construction has just got under way. It has the ability to carry out material verification and amplification experiments in real ocean conditions. The oceans are estimated to contain some 4 billion tons of the metal. […]
Hybrid bound states in the continuum in terahertz metasurfaces
Phys.org May 26, 2023 The most common strategy to apply bound states in the continuum (BICs) in a metasurface is by breaking symmetry of resonators in the uniform array that leaks the otherwise uncoupled mode to free space and exhibits an inverse quadratic relationship between quality factor (Q) and asymmetry. Researchers in China have proposed a scheme to further reduce scattering losses and improve the robustness of symmetry protected BICs by decreasing the radiation density with a hybrid BIC lattice. They observed a significant increase of radiative Q in the hybrid lattice compared to the uniform lattice. In the hybrid […]
A flexible near-infrared light-writing multicolor hydrogel system for on-demand information display
Nanowerk May 22, 2023 It is challenging to construct intelligent rewritable display systems with integrated functionality of remote control, rapid activation, multicolor and multimode display. Researchers in China developed a kind of rewritable hydrogel multicolor systems that can combine the merits of near-infrared (NIR) light-writing and projecting modes for on-demand information display. The systems have multilayer layout consisting of poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS)-sealed carbon nanotubes (CNTs) film as photothermal control unit and embedded fluorescent hydrogels as multicolor display unit, in which thermoresponsive hydrogel is constrained within non-responsive hydrogel. The design resulted in rapid and reversible hand-written display of arbitrary information. They demonstrated […]
Initial wind field structure: A crucial factor in determining tropical cyclone size and intensity
Phys.org May 15, 2023 Researchers in China conducted experiments by varying the radius of maximum wind (RMW) and shape parameter b of the initial vortices. The size–intensity relationship was quantified by the linear regression coefficient of the azimuthally-averaged gale-force wind radius against the maximum wind during the development stage, reflecting the degree of size expansion at the same intensity increment. The regression coefficient increased with increased RMW and decreased b, with the RMW being the primary constraint. Enlarging the RMW led to a secondary circulation with a horizontally elongated structure, which retards the intensification while expanding the size. Broadening the […]
Quantum random number generator operates securely and independently of source devices
Phys.org May 17, 2023 Quantum random number generators (QRNGs) can provide genuine randomness by exploiting the intrinsic probabilistic nature of quantum mechanics. However, the true randomness acquisition could be subjected to attacks from untrusted devices involved or their deviations from the theoretical modeling in real-life implementation. Researchers in China proposed and experimentally demonstrated a source-device-independent QRNG, which enabled accessing true random bits with an untrusted source device. The random bits were generated by measuring the arrival time of either photon of the time–energy entangled photon pairs produced from spontaneous parametric downconversion, where the entanglement was testified through the observation of […]
Replication of room-temperature superconductor claims fails to show superconductivity
Phys.org May 17, 2023 Researchers in China attempting to replicate the superconductivity results from an experiment conducted by a team at the University of Rochester (UoR) doping a lutetium-hydrogen chemical with nitrogen. The team in China found that the process did lead to the formation of a compound that at first glance appeared to be identical to that created by the team at UoR. A closer look using energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy showed its structure, a hydrogen-lutetium-nitrogen compound, that looked nearly identical to the UoR compound. The Chinese team even found the same color changes reported by the UoR team […]
Scientists discover semi-metallization and novel photoelectric behavior in lead iodide under high pressure
Phys.org May 10, 2023 Topological semimetals have advantages in achieving highly sensitive, low energy photodetection with ultrafast operation. Although various semimetals have been explored recently, new semimetals are still being pursued for high-responsivity photodetectors with broadband response. Researchers in China reported a pressure-induced semiconductor–semimetal transition in two-dimensional wide-band semiconducting lead iodide (PbI2). The photocurrent under visible light showed abrupt increases by two orders of magnitude at ≈25 GPa, where the crystalline structure transforms from the Pnma to I4/MMM phase. The responding band expanded from visible light to at least the telecom wavelength 1550 nm. The spectra of PbI2 suggested that […]