Cryogenic thermo-optic thin-film lithium niobate modulator with an NbN superconducting heater

We propose and demonstrate a cryogenic thermo-optic(TO)modulator in x-cut thin-film lithium niobate(TFLN)with an NbN superconducting heater.Compared to a conventional metal heating electrode,a fast and energy-efficient modulation is obtained by placing an NbN superconducting heating electrode above the TFLN waveguide.The transition of the NbN superconducting electrode between superconducting and normal states turns the heating and cooling processes from continuous to discontinuous change.Thus,the energy consumption during the modulation process is reduced proportionally.The rise/fall time of the proposed device is 22μs/15μs,which has been the fastest response time reported in TFLN thermo-optic modulators so far.The presented TO modulator can easily be used at cryogenic temperatures and has great potential for applications in cryogenic optoelectronics.

Aqueous synthesis of bright near-infrared-emitting Zn-Cu-In-Se quantum dots for multiplexed detection of tumor markers

Aqueous synthesis is a green but challenging pathway to produce cadmium-free,bright,and near-infrared(NIR)emitting quantum dots(QDs).Herein,we develop a straightforward aqueous phase approach to prepare Zn-Cu-In-Se QDs with tunable emission from 630 to 800 nm through varying the molar ratio of Zn and Cu.The ultrasmall nanoparticle size remains nearly fixed(~2.6 nm)when the QD composition is varied,allowing for the effects of composition on the optical properties of QDs to be decoupled from the impact of particle size.By leveraging the off-stoichiometric effect on photoluminescence(PL),Zn-Cu-In-Se QDs with a Zn:Cu molar ratio of 1.0 show a long PL decay lifetime of 211 ns and an absolute photoluminescence quantum yield(PLQY)of 14.2%.The PLQY is further enhanced by overcoating a ZnS shell,reaching up to 25.8%.Based on the bright,biocompatible,and emission-tunable QDs,nanoprobes with targeting capability for multiple tumor markers are further constructed and employed to simultaneously ascertain targets in the cytoplasm and cell membrane.This study provides a green and effective strategy for achieving bright and biocompatible NIR quantum dots for multiplexed biodetection applications.

Synthesis of Sn nanocluster@carbon dots for photodynamic therapy application

Recently,photodynamic therapy(PDT)has been extensively applied in clinical and coadjuvant treatment of various kinds of tumors.However,the photosensitizer(PS)of PDT still lack of high production of singlet oxygen(^(1)O_(2)),low cytotoxicity and high biocompatibility.Herein,we propose a facile method for establishing a new core-shell structured Sn nanocluster@carbon dots(CDs)PS.Firstly,Sn^(4+)@S-CDs complex is synthesized using the sulfur-doped CDs(S-CDs)and SnCl4 as raw materials,and subsequently the new PS(Sn nanocluster@CDs)is obtained after vaporization of Sn4+@S-CDs solution.Remarkably,the obtained Sn nanocluster@CDs show an enhanced fluorescence as well as a higher ^(1)O_(2) quantum yield(QY)than S-CDs.The high ^(1)O_(2) QY(58.3%)irradiated by the LED light(400-700 nm,40 mW/cm^(2)),induce the reduction of 4 T1 cancer cells viability by 25%.More intriguingly,no visible damage happens to healthy cells,with little impact on liver tissue due to renal excretion,both in vitro and in vivo experiments demonstrate that Sn nanocluster@CDs may become a promising PS,owning a high potential for application in PDT.