Preface: celebrating the 60th anniversary of the University of Science and Technology of China

The University of Science and Technology of China(USTC)is a prominent institution with an excellent reputation for education and innovation that resonates across the world.The university holds a special place in history.It was established by the Chinese Academy of Sciences(CAS)in1958 to meet China’s science and technology needs and increase the country’s international competitiveness.Throughout its history we have focused on frontier areas of science and technology and educated top leaders in science and technology for China and the world.

Historical retrospects and evolutionary characteristics of paleogenomic science and technology

Paleogenomics is a discipline in which the extraction and analysis of DNA from ancient biological remains are studied to understand the evolutionary history of past organisms.Research on this topic has revealed the evolutionary history of humans and other species,traced human migrations and genetic changes,and investigated ancient diseases and environmental influences due to its uniqueness.This paper reviews the scientific and technological history of the development of paleogenomics,including the molecular cloning era,the polymerase chain reaction(PCR)technique era,the genomics era,and the bio-data analysis era.This field explores the key technological development processes and effects of significant scientific discoveries,ranging from gene cloning technology and sequencing technology to breakthroughs and applications in big data analysis,addressing challenges such as sample contamination and trace collection analysis in paleogenomics research.

Mechanism by which Rab5 promotes regeneration and functional recovery of zebrafish Mauthner axons

Rab5 is a GTPase protein that is involved in intracellular membrane trafficking. It functions by binding to various effector proteins and regulating cellular responses, including the formation of transport vesicles and their fusion with the cellular membrane. Rab5 has been reported to play an important role in the development of the zebrafish embryo;however, its role in axonal regeneration in the central nervous system remains unclear. In this study, we established a zebrafish Mauthner cell model of axonal injury using single-cell electroporation and two-photon axotomy techniques. We found that overexpression of Rab5 in single Mauthner cells promoted marked axonal regeneration and increased the number of intra-axonal transport vesicles. In contrast, treatment of zebrafish larvae with the Rab kinase inhibitor CID-1067700markedly inhibited axonal regeneration in Mauthner cells. We also found that Rab5 activated phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase(PI3K) during axonal repair of Mauthner cells and promoted the recovery of zebrafish locomotor function. Additionally, rapamycin, an inhibitor of the mechanistic target of rapamycin downstream of PI3K, markedly hindered axonal regeneration. These findings suggest that Rab5 promotes the axonal regeneration of injured zebrafish Mauthner cells by activating the PI3K signaling pathway.

Development of sustainable and efficient recycling technology for spent Li-ion batteries: Traditional and transformation go hand in hand

Clean and efficient recycling of spent lithium-ion batteries(LIBs)has become an urgent need to promote sustainable and rapid development of human society.Therefore,we provide a critical and comprehensive overview of the various technologies for recycling spent LIBs,starting with lithium-ion power batteries.Recent research on raw material collection,metallurgical recovery,separation and purification is highlighted,particularly in terms of all aspects of economic efficiency,energy consumption,technology transformation and policy management.Mechanisms and pathways for transformative full-component recovery of spent LIBs are explored,revealing a clean and efficient closed-loop recovery mechanism.Optimization methods are proposed for future recycling technologies,with a focus on how future research directions can be industrialized.Ultimately,based on life-cycle assessment,the challenges of future recycling are revealed from the LIBs supply chain and stability of the supply chain of the new energy battery industry to provide an outlook on clean and efficient short process recycling technologies.This work is designed to support the sustainable development of the new energy power industry,to help meet the needs of global decarbonization strategies and to respond to the major needs of industrialized recycling.

Diagnosis and treatment of refractory infectious diseases using nanopore sequencing technology:Three case reports

BACKGROUND Infectious diseases are still one of the greatest threats to human health,and the etiology of 20%of cases of clinical fever is unknown;therefore,rapid identification of pathogens is highly important.Traditional culture methods are only able to detect a limited number of pathogens and are time-consuming;serologic detection has window periods,false-positive and false-negative problems;and nucleic acid molecular detection methods can detect several known pathogens only once.Three-generation nanopore sequencing technology provides new options for identifying pathogens.CASE SUMMARY Case 1:The patient was admitted to the hospital with abdominal pain for three days and cessation of defecation for five days,accompanied by cough and sputum.Nanopore sequencing of the drainage fluid revealed the presence of orallike bacteria,leading to a clinical diagnosis of bronchopleural fistula.Cefoperazone sodium sulbactam treatment was effective.Case 2:The patient was admitted to the hospital with fever and headache,and CT revealed lung inflammation.Antibiotic treatment for Streptococcus pneumoniae,identified through nanopore sequencing of cerebrospinal fluid,was effective.Case 3:The patient was admitted to our hospital with intermittent fever and an enlarged neck mass that had persisted for more than six months.Despite antibacterial treatment,her symptoms worsened.The nanopore sequencing results indicate that voriconazole treatment is effective for Aspergillus brookii.The patient was diagnosed with mixed cell type classical Hodgkin's lymphoma with infection.CONCLUSION Three-generation nanopore sequencing technology allows for rapid and accurate detection of pathogens in human infectious diseases.

Effect of safety valve types on the gas venting behavior and thermal runaway hazard severity of large-format prismatic lithium iron phosphate batteries

The safety valve is an important component to ensure the safe operation of lithium-ion batteries(LIBs).However,the effect of safety valve type on the thermal runaway(TR)and gas venting behavior of LIBs,as well as the TR hazard severity of LIBs,are not known.In this paper,the TR and gas venting behavior of three 100 A h lithium iron phosphate(LFP)batteries with different safety valves are investigated under overheating.Compared to previous studies,the main contribution of this work is in studying and evaluating the effect of gas venting behavior and TR hazard severity of LFP batteries with three safety valve types.Two significant results are obtained:(Ⅰ)the safety valve type dominates over gas venting pressure of battery during safety venting,the maximum gas venting pressure of LFP batteries with a round safety valve is 3320 Pa,which is one order of magnitude higher than other batteries with oval or cavity safety valve;(Ⅱ)the LFP battery with oval safety valve has the lowest TR hazard as shown by the TR hazard assessment model based on gray-fuzzy analytic hierarchy process.This study reveals the effect of safety valve type on TR and gas venting,providing a clear direction for the safety valve design.

Recent advances in the application of MXenes for neural tissue engineering and regeneration

Transition metal carbides and nitrides(MXenes)are crystal nanomaterials with a number of surface functional groups such as fluorine,hydroxyl,and oxygen,which can be used as carriers for proteins and drugs.MXenes have excellent biocompatibility,electrical conductivity,surface hydrophilicity,mechanical properties and easy surface modification.However,at present,the stability of most MXenes needs to be improved,and more synthesis methods need to be explored.MXenes are good substrates for nerve cell regeneration and nerve reconstruction,which have broad application prospects in the repair of nervous system injury.Regarding the application of MXenes in neuroscience,mainly at the cellular level,the long-term in vivo biosafety and effects also need to be further explored.This review focuses on the progress of using MXenes in nerve regeneration over the last few years;discussing preparation of MXenes and their biocompatibility with different cells as well as the regulation by MXenes of nerve cell regeneration in two-dimensional and three-dimensional environments in vitro.MXenes have great potential in regulating the proliferation,differentiation,and maturation of nerve cells and in promoting regeneration and recovery after nerve injury.In addition,this review also presents the main challenges during optimization processes,such as the preparation of stable MXenes and long-term in vivo biosafety,and further discusses future directions in neural tissue engineering.

Effects of content and particle size of TiH2 powders on the energy output rules of RDX composite explosives

In order to improve the detonation characteristics of RDX,a RDX-based composite explosive with TiH_(2)powders was prepared.The effects of content and particle size of TiH_(2)powders on thermal safety,shock wave parameters and thermal damage effects of RDX-based composite explosive were studied with the C80 microcalorimeter,air blast experiment system and colorimetric thermometry method.Experimental results showed that TiH_(2)powders could enhance the thermal stability of RDX-based composite explosive and increase its ultimate decomposition heat.The content and particle size of TiH_(2)powders also had significant effects on the thermal safety,detonation velocity,shock wave parameters,fireball temperature and duration of RDX-based composite explosives.Furthermore,the differences of TiH_(2)and Ti powders on the detonation energy output rules of RDX-based composite explosives were also compared,showing that TiH_(2)powders had better influences on improving the explosion power and thermal damage effect of RDX-based composite explosives than Ti powders,for the participation of free H_(2)released by TiH_(2)powders in the detonation process.TiH_(2)powders have important research values as a novel energetic additive in the field of military composite explosives.

Deformations at Earth’s dayside magnetopause during quasi-radial IMF conditions:Global kinetic simulations and Soft X-ray Imaging

The Solar wind Magnetosphere Ionosphere Link Explorer(SMILE)is a joint mission of the European Space Agency(ESA)and the Chinese Academy of Sciences(CAS).Primary goals are investigating the dynamic response of the Earth's magnetosphere to the solar wind(SW)impact via simultaneous in situ magnetosheath plasma and magnetic field measurements,X-Ray images of the magnetosheath and magnetic cusps,and UV images of global auroral distributions.Magnetopause deformations associated with magnetosheath high speed jets(HSJs)under a quasi-parallel interplanetary magnetic field condition are studied using a threedimensional(3-D)global hybrid simulation.Soft X-ray intensity calculated based on both physical quantities of solar wind proton and oxygen ions is compared.We obtain key findings concerning deformations at the magnetopause:(1)Magnetopause deformations are highly coherent with the magnetosheath HSJs generated at the quasi-parallel region of the bow shock,(2)X-ray intensities estimated using solar wind h+and self-consistentO7+ions are consistent with each other,(3)Visual spacecraft are employed to check the discrimination ability for capturing magnetopause deformations on Lunar and polar orbits,respectively.The SMILE spacecraft on the polar orbit could be expected to provide opportunities for capturing the global geometry of the magnetopause in the equatorial plane.A striking point is that SMILE has the potential to capture small-scale magnetopause deformations and magnetosheath transients,such as HSJs,at medium altitudes on its orbit.Simulation results also demonstrate that a lunar based imager(e.g.,Lunar Environment heliospheric X-ray Imager,LEXI)is expected to observe a localized brightening of the magnetosheath during HSJ events in the meridian plane.These preliminary results might contribute to the pre-studies for the SMILE and LEXI missions by providing qualitative and quantitative soft X-ray estimates of dayside kinetic processes.

Fecal microbiota transplantation for treatment of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease:Mechanism,clinical evidence,and prospect

The population of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease(NAFLD)patients along with relevant advanced liver disease is projected to continue growing,because currently no medications are approved for treatment.Fecal microbiota transplantation(FMT)is believed a novel and promising therapeutic approach based on the concept of the gut-liver axis in liver disease.There has been an increase in the number of pre-clinical and clinical studies evaluating FMT in NAFLD treatment,however,existing findings diverge on its effects.Herein,we briefly summarized the mechanism of FMT for NAFLD treatment,reviewed randomized controlled trials for evaluating its efficacy in NAFLD,and proposed the prospect of future trials on FMT.

Manipulating the Macroscopic and Microscopic Morphology of Large-Area Gravure-Printed ZnO Films for High-Performance Flexible Organic Solar Cells

Gravure printing is a promising large-scale fabrication method for flexible organic solar cells(FOSCs)because it is compatible with two-dimension patternable roll-to-roll fabrication.However,the unsuitable rheological property of ZnO nanoinks resulted in unevenness and looseness of the gravure-printed ZnO interfacial layer.Here we propose a strategy to manipulate the macroscopic and microscopic of the gravure-printed ZnO films through using mixed solvent and poly(vinylpyrrolidone)(PVP)additive.The regulation of drying speed effectively manipulates the droplets fusion and leveling process and eliminates the printing ribbing structure in the macroscopic morphology.The additive of PVP effectively regulates the rheological property and improves the microscopic compactness of the films.Following this method,large-area ZnO∶PVP films(28×9 cm^(2))with excellent uniformity,compactness,conductivity,and bending durability were fabricated.The power conversion efficiencies of FOSCs with gravure-printed AgNWs and ZnO∶PVP films reached 14.34%and 17.07%for the 1 cm^(2)PM6:Y6 and PM6∶L8-BO flexible devices.The efficiency of 17.07%is the highest value to date for the 1 cm^(2)FOSCs.The use of mixed solvent and PVP addition also significantly enlarged the printing window of ZnO ink,ensuring high-quality printed thin films with thicknesses varying from 30 to 100 nm.

Assessment of International GNSS Service Global Ionosphere Map products over China region based on measurements from the Crustal Movement Observation Network of China

The global ionosphere maps(GIM)provided by the International GNSS Service(IGS)are extensively utilized for ionospheric morphology monitoring,scientific research,and practical application.Assessing the credibility of GIM products in data-sparse regions is of paramount importance.In this study,measurements from the Crustal Movement Observation Network of China(CMONOC)are leveraged to evaluate the suitability of IGS-GIM products over China region in 2013-2014.The indices of mean error(ME),root mean square error(RMSE),and normalized RMSE(NRMSE)are then utilized to quantify the accuracy of IGS-GIM products.Results revealed distinct local time and latitudinal dependencies in IGS-GIM errors,with substantially high errors at nighttime(NRMSE:39%)and above 40°latitude(NRMSE:49%).Seasonal differences also emerged,with larger equinoctial deviations(NRMSE:33.5%)compared with summer(20%).A preliminary analysis implied that the irregular assimilation of sparse IGS observations,compounded by China’s distinct geomagnetic topology,may manifest as error variations.These results suggest that modeling based solely on IGS-GIM observations engenders inadequate representations across China and that a thorough examination would proffer the necessary foundation for advancing regional total electron content(TEC)constructions.

A study on the simulation of carbon and water fluxes of Dangxiong alpine meadow and its response to climate change

The alpine meadow ecosystem accounts for 27%of the total area of the Tibetan Plateau and is also one of the most important vegetation types.The Dangxiong alpine meadow ecosystem,located in the south-central part of the Tibetan Plateau,is a typical example.To understand the carbon and water fluxes,water use efficiency(WUE),and their responses to future climate change for the alpine meadow ecosystem in the Dangxiong area,two parameter estimation methods,the Model-independent Parameter Estimation(PEST)and the Dynamic Dimensions Search(DDS),were used to optimize the Biome-BGC model.Then,the gross primary productivity(GPP)and evapotranspiration(ET)were simulated.The results show that the DDS parameter calibration method has a better performance.The annual GPP and ET show an increasing trend,while the WUE shows a decreasing trend.Meanwhile,ET and GPP reach their peaks in July and August,respectively,and WUE shows a“dual-peak”pattern,reaching peaks in May and November.Furthermore,according to the simulation results for the next nearly 100 years,the ensemble average GPP and ET exhibit a significant increasing trend,and the growth rate under the SSP5–8.5 scenario is greater than that under the SSP2–4.5 scenario.WUE shows an increasing trend under the SSP2–4.5 scenario and a significant increasing trend under the SSP5–8.5 scenario.This study has important scientific significance for carbon and water cycle prediction and vegetation ecological protection on the Tibetan Plateau.

Normal and Superconducting Properties of La_(3)Ni_(2)O_(7)

This review provides a comprehensive overview of current research on the structural,electronic,and magnetic characteristics of the recently discovered high-temperature superconductor La_(3)Ni_(2)O_(7) under high pressures.We present the experimental results for synthesizing and characterizing this material,derived from measurements of transport,thermodynamics,and various spectroscopic techniques,and discuss their physical implications.We also explore theoretical models proposed to describe the electronic structures and superconducting pairing symmetry in La_(3)Ni_(2)O_(7),highlighting the intricate interplay between electronic correlations and magnetic interactions.Despite these advances,challenges remain in growing high-quality samples free of extrinsic phases and oxygen deficiencies and in developing reliable measurement tools for determining diamagnetism and other physical quantities under high pressures.Further investigations in these areas are essential to deepening our understanding of the physical properties of La_(3)Ni_(2)O_(7) and unlocking its superconducting pairing mechanism.

MXene@c-MWCNT Adhesive Silica Nanofiber Membranes Enhancing Electromagnetic Interference Shielding and Thermal Insulation Performance in Extreme Environments

A lightweight flexible thermally stable composite is fabricated by com-bining silica nanofiber membranes(SNM)with MXene@c-MWCNT hybrid film.The flexible SNM with outstanding thermal insulation are prepared from tetraethyl orthosilicate hydrolysis and condensation by electrospinning and high-temperature calcination;the MXene@c-MWCNT_(x:y)films are prepared by vacuum filtration tech-nology.In particular,the SNM and MXene@c-MWCNT_(6:4)as one unit layer(SMC_(1))are bonded together with 5 wt%polyvinyl alcohol(PVA)solution,which exhibits low thermal conductivity(0.066 W m^(-1)K^(-1))and good electromagnetic interference(EMI)shielding performance(average EMI SE_(T),37.8 dB).With the increase in func-tional unit layer,the overall thermal insulation performance of the whole composite film(SMC_(x))remains stable,and EMI shielding performance is greatly improved,especially for SMC_(3)with three unit layers,the average EMI SET is as high as 55.4 dB.In addition,the organic combination of rigid SNM and tough MXene@c-MWCNT_(6:4)makes SMC_(x)exhibit good mechanical tensile strength.Importantly,SMC_(x)exhibit stable EMI shielding and excellent thermal insulation even in extreme heat and cold environment.Therefore,this work provides a novel design idea and important reference value for EMI shielding and thermal insulation components used in extreme environmental protection equipment in the future.

Effect of substrate temperature and oxygen plasma treatment on the properties of magnetron-sputtered CdS for solar cell applications

Cadmium sulfide(CdS)is an n-type semiconductor with excellent electrical conductivity that is widely used as an electron transport material(ETM)in solar cells.At present,numerous methods for preparing CdS thin films have emerged,among which magnetron sputtering(MS)is one of the most commonly used vacuum techniques.For this type of technique,the substrate temperature is one of the key deposition parameters that affects the interfacial properties between the target film and substrate,determining the specific growth habits of the films.Herein,the effect of substrate temperature on the microstructure and electrical properties of magnetron-sputtered CdS(MS-CdS)films was studied and applied for the first time in hydrothermally deposited antimony selenosulfide(Sb_(2)(S,Se)_(3))solar cells.Adjusting the substrate temperature not only results in the design of the flat and dense film with enhanced crystallinity but also leads to the formation of an energy level arrangement with a Sb_(2)(S,Se)_(3)layer that is more favorable for electron transfer.In addition,we developed an oxygen plasma treatment for CdS,reducing the parasitic absorption of the device and resulting in an increase in the short-circuit current density of the solar cell.This study demonstrates the feasibility of MS-CdS in the fabrication of hydrothermal Sb_(2)(S,Se)_(3)solar cells and provides interface optimization strategies to improve device performance.

Wigner function of optical cumulant operator and its dissipation in thermo-entangled state representation

To conveniently calculate the Wigner function of the optical cumulant operator and its dissipation evolution in a thermal environment, in this paper, the thermo-entangled state representation is introduced to derive the general evolution formula of the Wigner function, and its relation to Weyl correspondence is also discussed. The method of integration within the ordered product of operators is essential to our discussion.

Coupling and characterization of a Si/SiGe triple quantum dot array with a microwave resonator

Scaling up spin qubits in silicon-based quantum dots is one of the pivotal challenges in achieving large-scale semiconductor quantum computation.To satisfy the connectivity requirements and reduce the lithographic complexity,utilizing the qubit array structure and the circuit quantum electrodynamics(cQED)architecture together is expected to be a feasible scaling scheme.A triple-quantum dot(TQD)coupled with a superconducting resonator is regarded as a basic cell to demonstrate this extension scheme.In this article,we investigate a system consisting of a silicon TQD and a high-impedance TiN coplanar waveguide(CPW)resonator.The TQD can couple to the resonator via the right double-quantum dot(RDQD),which reaches the strong coupling regime with a charge–photon coupling strength of g0/(2p)=175 MHz.Moreover,we illustrate the high tunability of the TQD through the characterization of stability diagrams,quadruple points(QPs),and the quantum cellular automata(QCA)process.Our results contribute to fostering the exploration of silicon-based qubit integration.

Unlocking the potential of ultra-thin two-dimensional antimony materials:Selective growth and carbon coating for efficient potassium-ion storage

Antimony-based anodes have attracted wide attention in potassium-ion batteries due to their high theoretical specific capacities(∼660 mA h g^(-1))and suitable voltage platforms.However,severe capacity fading caused by huge volume change and limited ion transportation hinders their practical applications.Recently,strategies for controlling the morphologies of Sb-based materials to improve the electrochemical performances have been proposed.Among these,the two-dimensional Sb(2D-Sb)materials present excellent properties due to shorted ion immigration paths and enhanced ion diffusion.Nevertheless,the synthetic methods are usually tedious,and even the mechanism of these strategies remains elusive,especially how to obtain large-scale 2D-Sb materials.Herein,a novel strategy to synthesize 2D-Sb material using a straightforward solvothermal method without the requirement of a complex nanostructure design is provided.This method leverages the selective adsorption of aldehyde groups in furfural to induce crystal growth,while concurrently reducing and coating a nitrogen-doped carbon layer.Compared to the reported methods,it is simpler,more efficient,and conducive to the production of composite nanosheets with uniform thickness(3–4 nm).The 2D-Sb@NC nanosheet anode delivers an extremely high capacity of 504.5 mA h g^(-1) at current densities of 100 mA g^(-1) and remains stable for more than 200 cycles.Through characterizations and molecular dynamic simulations,how potassium storage kinetics between 2D Sb-based materials and bulk Sb-based materials are explored,and detailed explanations are provided.These findings offer novel insights into the development of durable 2D alloy-based anodes for next-generation potassium-ion batteries.