Phonon-assisted upconversion photoluminescence of quantum emitters

Quantum emitters are widely used in quantum networks,quantum information processing,and quantum sensing due to their excellent optical properties.Compared with Stokes excitation,quantum emitters under anti-Stokes excitation exhibit better performance.In addition to laser cooling and nanoscale thermometry,anti-Stokes excitation can improve the coherence of single-photon sources for advanced quantum technologies.In this review,we follow the recent advances in phononassisted upconversion photoluminescence of quantum emitters and discuss the upconversion mechanisms,applications,and prospects for quantum emitters with anti-Stokes excitation.

Enhanced thermal emission from metal-free,fully epitaxial structures with epsilon-near-zero InAs layers

We introduce a novel method to create mid-infrared(MIR)thermal emitters using fully epitaxial,metal-free structures.Through the strategic use of epsilon-near-zero(ENZ)thin films in InAs layers,we achieve a narrow-band,wide-angle,and p-polarized thermal emission spectra.This approach,employing molecular beam epitaxy,circumvents the complexities associated with current layered structures and yields temperature-resistant emission wavelengths.Our findings contribute a promising route towards simpler,more efficient MIR optoelectronic devices.

Thin paints for durable and scalable radiative cooling

Passive daytime radiative cooling(PDRC) is environment-friendly without energy input by enhancing the coating's solar reflectance(R_(solar)) and thermal emittance(ε_(LWIR)) in the atmosphere's long-wave infrared transmission window.However,high R_(solar) is usually achieved by increasing the coating's thickness,which not only increases materials' cost but also impairs heat transfer.Additionally,the desired high R_(solar) is vulnerable to dust pollution in the outdoors.In this work,a thin paint was designed by mixing hBN plates,PFOTS,and IPA. R_(solar)=0.963 and ε_(LWIR)=0.927 was achieved at a thickness of 150 μm due to the high backscattering ability of scatters.A high through-plane thermal conductivity(~1.82 W m^(-1) K^(-1)) also can be obtained.In addition,the porous structure coupled with the binder PFOTS resulted in a contact angle of 154°,demonstrating excellent durability under dust contamination.Outdoor experiments showed that the thin paint can obtain a 2.3℃ lower temperature for sub-ambient cooling than the reference PDRC coating in the daytime.Furtherly,the above-ambient heat dissipation performance can be enhanced by spraying the thin paint on a 3D heat sink,which was 15.7℃ lower than the reference 1D structure,demonstrating excellent performance for durable and scalable PDRC applications.

Simulation of liquid cone formation on the tip apex of indium field emission electric propulsion thrusters

Field emission electric propulsion(FEEP) thrusters possess excellent characteristics, such as high specific impulse, low power requirements, compact size and precise pointing capabilities,making them ideal propulsion devices for micro-nano satellites. However, the detection of certain aspects, such as the evolution process of the liquid cone and the physical quantities at the cone apex, proves challenging due to the minute size of the needle tip and the vacuum environment in which they operate. Consequently, this paper introduces a computational fluid dynamics(CFD) model to gain insight into the formation process of the liquid cone on the tip apex of indium FEEP. The CFD model is based on electrohydrodynamic(EHD) equations and the volume of fluid(VOF) method. The entire cone formation process can be divided into three stages, and the time-dependent characteristics of the physical quantities at the cone apex are investigated. The influences of film thickness, apex radius size and applied voltage are compared.The results indicate a gradual increase in the values of electrostatic stress and surface tension stress at the cone apex over an initial period, followed by a rapid escalation within a short duration.Apex configurations featuring a small radius, thick film and high voltage exhibit a propensity for liquid cone formation, and the cone growth time decreases as the film thickness increases.Moreover, some unstable behavior is observed during the cone formation process.

Electrically-driven ultrafast out-of-equilibrium light emission from hot electrons in suspended graphene/hBN heterostructures

Nanoscale light sources with high speed of electrical modulation and low energy consumption are key components for nanophotonics and optoelectronics.The record-high carrier mobility and ultrafast carrier dynamics of graphene make it promising as an atomically thin light emitter which can be further integrated into arbitrary platforms by van der Waals forces.However,due to the zero bandgap,graphene is difficult to emit light through the interband recombination of carriers like conventional semiconductors.Here,we demonstrate ultrafast thermal light emitters based on suspended graphene/hexagonal boron nitride(Gr/hBN)heterostructures.Electrons in biased graphene are significantly heated up to 2800 K at modest electric fields,emitting bright photons from the near-infrared to the visible spectral range.By eliminating the heat dissipation channel of the substrate,the radiation efficiency of the suspended Gr/hBN device is about two orders of magnitude greater than that of graphene devices supported on SiO2or hBN.Wefurther demonstrate that hot electrons and low-energy acoustic phonons in graphene are weakly coupled to each other and are not in full thermal equilibrium.Direct cooling ofhigh-temperature hot electrons to low-temperature acoustic phonons is enabled by the significant near-field heat transfer at the highly localized Gr/hBN interface,resulting in ultrafast thermal emission with up to 1 GHz bandwidth under electrical excitation.It is found thatsuspending the Gr/hBN heterostructures on the SiO2trenches significantly modifies the light emission due to the formation of the optical cavity and showed a~440%enhancement inintensity at the peak wavelength of 940 nm compared to the black-body thermal radiation.The demonstration of electrically driven ultrafast light emission from suspended Gr/hBNheterostructures sheds the light on applications of graphene heterostructures in photonicintegrated circuits,such as broadband light sources and ultrafast thermo-optic phase modulators.

Effects of arrangement of surge-root irrigation emitters on growth,yield and water use efficiency of apple trees

Six-year old apple trees were selected for field experiment.The objective of this study was to obtain the reasonable arrangement of surge-root irrigation emitters in apple orchards.There were three factors:the buried depth H(25,40,55 cm),the horizontal distance L(30,40,60 cm)between the emitters and the trunk of the experimental tree,and the number of the irrigation emitters N(1,2,4).The effect of the arrangement of surge-root irrigation emitters on the growth,yield and irrigation water use efficiency(IWUE)of apple trees were studied in Northern Shaanxi where the irrigation quota takes 60%-75%of the field water capacity.The results showed that the arrangement of emitters for surge-root irrigation had a significant effect on apple tree yield and IWUE,especially,the yield and IWUE reached 28388.17 kg/hm2 and 16.83 kg/m3 in treatment T3,respectively.At the same L and N levels(T1,T2,and T3),the yield and IWUE in treatment T3 were the highest,and the yields in treatments T1 and T2 were decreased by 26.22%and 31.48%,while IWUE is reduced by14.02%and 18.12%compared with T3,respectively.At the same H and N levels(T3,T4,and T5),the yield and IWUE of apple trees were decreased with increasing L level.Especially,when L was 30 cm(T3),the yield and IWUE were the highest.The same L and H levels(T3,T6,and T7)could promote the growth of apple trees when N was 2(T3).Compared with treatment T3,it was found that the increment of new shoots was decreased by 8.07%-18.71%,and the fruit diameter was decreased by 5.41%-9.11%.Therefore,two emitters should be arranged symmetrically on both sides of an apple tree,each was buried at a 40 cm depth and 30 cm away from the trunk of the tree to effectively improve the yield and IWUE of the apple tree in mountainous areas in Northern Shaanxi.

Biofilm structure and its influence on clogging in drip irrigation emitters distributing reclaimed wastewater

Using reclaimed wastewater for crop irrigation is a practical alternative to discharge wastewater treatment plant effluents into surface waters.However,biofouling has been identified as a major contributor to emitter clogging in drip irrigation systems distributing reclaimed wastewater.Little is known about the biofilm structure and its influence on clogging in the drip emitter flow path.This study was first to investigate the microbial characteristics of mature biofilms present in the emitters and the effect of flow path structures on the biofilm microbial communities.The analysis of biofilm matrix structure using a scanning electron microscopy（SEM） revealed that particles in the matrix of the biofilm coupled extracellular polysaccharides（EPS） and formed sediment in the emitter flow path.Analysis of biofilm mass including protein,polysaccharide,and phospholipid fatty acids（PLFAs） showed that emitter flow path style influenced biofilm community structure and diversity.The correlations of biofilm biomass and discharge reduction after 360 h irrigation were computed and suggest that PFLAs provide the best correlation coeffcient.Comparatively,the emitter with the unsymmetrical dentate structure and shorter flow path（Emitter C） had the best anti-clogging capability.By optimizing the dentate structure,the internal flow pattern within the flow path could be enhanced as an important method to control the biofilm within emitter flow path.This study established electron microscope techniques and biochemical microbial analysis methods that may provide a framework for future emitter biofilm studies.

Clinical use of bone-targeting radiopharmaceuticals with focus on alpha-emitters

Various single or multi-modality therapeutic options are available to treat pain of bone metastasis in patients with prostate cancer.Different radionuclides that emitβ-rays such as 153Samarium and 89Strontium and achieve palliation are commercially available.In contrast toβ-emitters,223Radium as a a-emitter has a short path-length.The advantage of the a-emitter is thus a highly localized biological effect that is caused by radiation induced DNA double-strand breaks and subsequent cell killing and/or limited effectiveness of cellular repair mechanisms.Due to the limited range of the a-particles the bone surface to red bone marrow dose ratio is also lower for 223Radium which is expressed in a lower myelotoxicity.The a emitter 223Radium dichloride is the first radiopharmaceutical that significantly prolongslife in castrate resistant prostate cancer patients with wide-spread bone metastatic disease.In a phaseⅢ,randomized,double-blind,placebo-controlled study 921patients with castration-resistant prostate cancer and bone metastases were randomly assigned.The analysis confirmed the 223Radium survival benefit compared to the placebo(median,14.9 mo vs 11.3 mo;P<0.001).In addition,the treatment results in pain palliation and thus,improved quality of life and a delay of skeletal related events.At the same time the toxicity profile of223Radium was favourable.Since May 2013,223Radium dichloride(Xofigo?)is approved by the US Food and Drug Administration.

Status of Selective Emitters for p-Type c-Si Solar Cells

Crystalline silicon (c-Si) solar cells have the lion share in world PV market. Solar cells made from crystalline silicon have lower conversion efficiency, hence optimization of each process steps are very important. Achieving low-cost photovoltaic energy in the coming years will depend on the development of third-generation solar cells. Given the trend towards these Si materials, the most promising selective emitter methods are identified to date. Current industrial monocrystalline Cz Si solar cells based on screen-printing technology for contact formation and homogeneous emitter have an efficiency potential of around 18.4%. Limitations at the rear side by the fully covering Al-BSF can be changed by selective emitter designs allowing a decoupling and separate optimization of the metallised and non-metallised areas. Several selective emitter concepts that are already in industrial mass production or close to it are presented, and their specialties and status concerning cell performance are demonstrated. Key issues that are considered here are the cost-effectiveness, added complexity, additional benefits, reliability and efficiency potential of each selective emitter tech- niques.

Ⅲ–Ⅴ compounds as single photon emitters

Single-photon emitters (SPEs) are one of the key components in quantum information applications. The ideal SPEs emit a single photon or a photon-pair on demand, with high purity and distinguishability. SPEs can also be integrated in photonic circuits for scalable quantum communication and quantum computer systems. Quantum dots made from Ⅲ-Ⅴ compounds such as InGaAs or GaN have been found to be particularly attractive SPE sources due to their well studied optical performance and state of the art industrial flexibility in fabrication and integration. Here, we review the optical and optoelectronic properties and growth methods of general SPEs. Subsequently, a brief summary of the latest advantages in Ⅲ-Ⅴ compound SPEs and the research progress achieved in the past few years will be discussed. We finally describe frontier challenges and conclude with the latest SPE fabrication science and technology that can open new possibilities for quantum information applications.

Comparing and evaluating the nationally determined contributions of the top six emitters under the Paris Agreement goals

Comparing and evaluating the Nationally Determined Contribution(NDC) is an important element in global stocktake in the post-Paris climate negotiations, aimed at closing the emissions gap with the Paris Agreement goals. To date, however, there has still been no explicit guideline or method. By applying emissions allowance allocated by 16 schemes as benchmarks, this paper tries to compare and evaluate the NDCs of the top six emitters, which jointly account for about 70% of the world's CO_2 emissions. Results show that the four developed countries' NDCs lack ambition with respect to most allocations under 2℃ and all under 1.5℃, indicating they need to substantially ratchet up their NDCs and lead elevating mitigation. Evaluating cumulative emissions is more likely to clarify the ambition and fairness of China's NDC. If considering cumulative emissions, China's NDC is aligned with the median of cumulative allowances under 2℃ and within the 1.5℃ range. The Paris Agreement invited the Parties to communicate the mid-century low emissions strategies. This paper also tries to explore the mid-century mitigation in the perspective of allocations, which might provide decision-makers with some useful information when envisaging the post-NDC mitigation.

Brightening single-photon emitters by combining an ultrathin metallic antenna and a silicon quasi-BIC antenna

Bright single-photon emitters(SPEs)are fundamental components in many quantum applications.However,it is difficult to simultaneously get large Purcell enhancements and quantum yields in metallic nanostructures because of the huge losses in the metallic nanostructures.Herein,we propose to combine an ultrathin metallic bowtie antenna with a silicon antenna above a metallic substrate to simultaneously get large Purcell enhancements,quantum yields,and collection efficiencies.As a result,the brightness of SPEs in the hybrid nanostructure is greatly increased.Due to the deep subwavelength field confinement(mode size<10 nm)of surface plasmons in the ultrathin metallic film(thickness<4 nm),the Purcell enhancement of the metallic bowtie antenna improves by more than 25 times when the metal thickness decreases from 20 nm to 2 nm.In the hybrid nanostructures by combining an ultrathin metallic bowtie antenna with a silicon antenna,the Purcell enhancement(Fp≈2.6×10^(6))in the hybrid nanostructures is 63 times greater than those(≤4.1×10^(4))in the previous metallic and hybrid nanostructures.Because of the reduced ratio of electromagnetic fields in the ultrathin metallic bowtie antenna when the high-index silicon antenna is under the quasi-BIC state,a high quantum yield(QY≈0.70)is obtained.Moreover,the good radiation directivity of the quasi-BIC(bound state in the continuum)mode of the silicon antenna and the reflection of the metallic substrate result in a high collection efficiency(CE≈0.71).Consequently,the overall enhancement factor of brightness of a SPE in the hybrid nanostructure is EF∗≈Fp×QY×CE≈1.3×10^(6),which is 5.6×10^(2) times greater than those(EF∗≤2.2×103)in the previous metallic and hybrid nanostructures.

Platinum complexes as phosphorescent emitters in highly efficient organic light-emitting diodes

Applications of platinum complexes as phosphorescent emitters in high efficiency organic light-emitting diodes （OLEDs） were shortly discussed in this paper. Key recent studies on highly efficient blue, green, red and white-phosphorescent OLEDs based on Pt complexes are presented in terms of efficiency and color quality.

Polarization-switchable plasmonic emitters based on laser-induced bubbles

Owing to weak light-matter interactions in natural materials,it is difficult to dynamically tune and switch emission polariza-tion states of plasmonic emitters(or antennas)at nanometer scales.Here,by using a control laser beam to induce a bubble(n=1.0)in water(n=1.333)to obtain a large index variation as high as|Δn|=0.333,the emission polarization of an ultra-small plasmonic emitter(~0.4λ^(2))is experimentally switched at nanometer scales.The plasmonic emitter consists of two orthogonal subwavelength metallic nanogroove antennas on a metal surface,and the separation of the two anten-nas is only s_(x)=120 nm.The emission polarization state of the plasmonic emitter is related to the phase difference between the emission light from the two antennas.Because of a large refractive index variation(|Δn|=0.333),the phase difference is greatly changed when a microbubble emerges in water under a low-intensity control laser.As a result,the emission polarization of the ultra-small plasmonic emitter is dynamically switched from an elliptical polarization state to a linear polarization state,and the change of the degree of linear polarization is as high asΔγ≈0.66.

Photon pair source via two coupling single quantum emitters

We study the two coupling two-level single molecules driven by an external field as a photon pair source. The probability of emitting two photons, P2, is employed to describe the photon pair source quality in a short time, and the correlation coefficient RAB is employed to describe the photon pair source quality in a long time limit. The results demonstrate that the coupling single quantum emitters can be considered as a stable photon pair source.

Improving reverse intersystem crossing of MR-TADF emitters for OLEDs

Thermally activated delayed fluorescence(TADF)emitter is a promising organic light-emitting diode(OLED)material due to low cost,wide luminous color gamut and 100%exciton utilization efficiency[1].To achieve high TADF performance,a feasible strategy is to construct a twisted donor–acceptor(D–A)unit,decreasing the overlap between the highest occupied molecular orbital(HOMO)and the lowest unoccupied molecular orbital(LUMO),and minimizing the energy gap(∆E_(ST))between the lowest singlet(S_(1))and triplet(T_(1))states[2,3].However,this long-range charge transfer feature is often disadvantageous for achieving high oscillator strengths(f)and radiative transition rates(k_(r))[4](Fig.1(a)).

Thermophotovoltaic Emitters Based on a One-Dimensional Metallic-Dielectric Multilayer Nanostructures

In this paper, a one-dimensional multilayer is optimized for potential applications as thermophotovoltaic (TPV) selective emitter. The proposed TPV emitter was fabricated through a magnetron sputtering process by using the radio frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering system. The spectral emittance of the proposed TPV emitter is measured by using spectral transmittance and reflectance measurement system at wavelength from 0.3 μm to 2.5 μm at near-normal incident 8。. The bidirectional reflectance distribution function BRDF is measured by three axis automated scatterometer (TAAS). The effect of the diffraction orders and plane of incidence on the spectral emittance of the proposed TPV emitter is calculated numerically by using the rigorous coupled-wave analysis (RCWA). The emittance spectrum of the proposed TPV selective emitter shows three close to unity emission peaks which are explained by the surface plasmon polariton (SPP), gap plasmon polariton (GPP) and magnetic polariton (MP) excitation. The results show that the proposed emitter has high emittance value in the spectral range of 0.69 emitter, if used as a selective emitter with a low band gap photovoltaic cell (GaSb), would lead to high TPV overall efficiency and high electrical output power.

Determination of Plutonium Isotopes in Radioactive Waste Contaminated with Uranium and Thorium

Nucleco is the Sogin Group’s Italian leading company in the sector of radiological services,radioactive waste management,decontamination and reclamation of industrial sites and nuclear power plants.Nucleco is 60%owned by Sogin and 40%by ENEA-National Agency for New Technologies.The waste characterization carried out by Nucleco SpA includes a large variety of radionuclides belonging to the gamma,beta and alpha emitter families.The determination of Uranium and Plutonium isotopes plays a key role in the waste characterization.Nucleco SpA has distinguished itself in characterizations of radioactive waste in complex and nuclear plant matrices.These matrices have large amounts of alpha emitters,in particular isotopes of Uranium,Thorium and Plutonium.A significant presence of U238 results in such a large amount of Th234(and daughters)that interferes with the determination of Pu241.Hence,there is the need of finding a pre-treatment,extraction and subsequent purification technique that would allow Th234 to be detached and thus Pu241 to be determined in complex high-activity matrices.The above elements are extracted using chromatography columns.An isotope of the element to be analyzed,with known activity,is added at the beginning of the process to determine the extraction yield.Before being eluted into the column,the sample undergoes a series of treatments in order to be purified of any interferents.The method developed by Nucleco involves the oxidation of Pu at valence+6 and the subsequent precipitation,in fluorides form,of the elements with valence+4 and+3(i.e.Th234).Pu241 is then measured by LSC(Liquid Scintillation Counting),while the other isotopes are measured by alpha spectrometry after electrodeposition on a metal plate.

ID effects on beam dynamics in the SSRF-U storage ring

This paper introduces the proposed insertion device(ID)scheme for the Shanghai Synchrotron Radiation Facility Upgrade.Based on this scheme,the influences of the ID radiation on the intra-beam scattering emittance and energy spread were evaluated.Optical distortion caused by the IDs was comprehensively examined and compensated using both local and global corrections.Subsequently,a frequency map analysis method was used to identify potentially dangerous resonance lines.In addition,the dynamic aperture,energy acceptance,and Touschek lifetime were calculated after considering high-order magnetic field errors to ensure that the ID effect did not affect the operation of the storage ring.

Nylon 6-cellulose composite hosted in a hypodermic needle: Biofluid extraction and analysis by ambient mass spectrometry in a single device

This study proposes a hypodermic needle(HN)as a sorbent holder and an electrospray(ESI)emitter,thus combining extraction and analysis in a single device.A novel nylon 6-cellulose(N6-Cel)composite sorbent is proposed to extract methadone from oral fluid samples.The cellulosic substrate provides the composite with high porosity,permitting the flow-through of the sample,while the polyamide contributes to the extraction of the analyte.The low price of the devices(considering the holder and the sorbent)contributes to the affordability of the method,and their small size allows easy transportation,opening the door to on-site extractions.Under the optimum conditions,the analyte can be determined by high-resolution ambient ionization mass spectrometry at a limit of detection(LOD)as low as 0.3 mg/L and precision(expressed as relative standard deviation,RSD)better than 9.3%.The trueness,expressed as relative recovery(RR),ranged from 90%to 109%.As high-resolution mass spectrometers are not available in many laboratories,the method was also adapted to low-resolution spectrometers.In this sense,the direct infusion of the eluates in a triple quadrupole-mass spectrometry provided an LOD of 2.2 mg/L.The RSD was better than 5.3%,and the RR ranged from 96%to 121%.