Magnetic Janus Particles: Synthesis and Multifunctional Applications.

Magnetic Janus particles (MJPs) with compositional compartmentalization and strong magnetic responsiveness play a pivotal role in various application fields, such as biotechnology, medicine, and materials science. However, comprehensive reviews of the field of MJPs remain limited. Here, this article attempts to fill the gap by reviewing the current common synthetic strategies for MJPs, including masking, microfluidics, self-assembly, phase separation, and seeded emulsion polymerization, among others.

Proton-controlled Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction and topological Hall effect in hydrogenated strontium ruthenate.

The Topological Hall effect (THE) is a fascinating physical phenomenon related to topological spin textures, serving as a powerful electrical probe for detecting and understanding these unconventional magnetic orders and skyrmions. Recently, the THE has been observed in strontium ruthenate (SrRuO, SRO) thin films and its heterostructures, which originates from the disruption of interfacial inversion symmetry and Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction (DMI). Here, we demonstrate a practically pure proton doping effect for controlling the DMI and THE in the SRO epitaxial films using the Pt electrode-assisted hydrogenation method.

Carrier-free immobilized enzyme for ligand fishing of carbonic anhydrase inhibitors in Salvia miltiorrhiza.

The traditional method for natural products discovering could be time-consuming and labor-intensive, thus ligand fishing has attracted a lot of attention as a fast-screening method. Nevertheless, ligand fishing often relied on immobilized enzyme with solid carriers, which can be expensive and complicated to prepare. In this study, a carrier-free enzyme immobilization technology, cross-linked enzyme aggregates (CLEAs), was introduced by preparing carbonic anhydrase cross-linked enzyme aggregates (CA-CLEAs), aiming to develop a method for ligand fishing that is simpler, faster and more cost-effective.

A novel fluorescent probe with Aggregation-Induced emission characteristics for PTP1B activity sensing and inhibitor screening.

Protein tyrosine phosphatase 1B (PTP1B) is an attractive target for the treatment of metabolic diseases such as type 2 diabetes and obesity. In this study, a novel fluorescent probe with aggregation-induced emission (AIE) characteristics was designed and synthesized. Within the fluorescent probe, a tetraphenylethene core is connected to a peptide sequence that can be specifically recognized and hydrolysed by PTP1B.

Organization of A2-Type Active Composite Nanorods.

Nanorods as building blocks are promising to construct functional superstructures. A paramagnetic FeO-based composite nanorod is large-scale synthesized from the poly(2-vinylpyridine) (P2VP) side chain grafted polymer bottlebrush by electrostatics-mediated intramolecular crosslinking via metallic coordination. Ultrasonication-assisted fracturing of the composite nanorod derives the corresponding A2-type composite nanorods whose two ends are active with the metallic coordinated P2VP exposed.

Polymer Single-Chain Nanoparticles: Shaping Solid Surfactants.

Polymer single-chain nanoparticles (SCNPs) have found a wide range of applications spanning catalysts, sensors and nanomedicine. The generation of structured SCNPs from star-shaped polymers with diverse architectures and functionalities affords a new avenue to expand the emerging research area. The large-scale synthesis of structured SCNPs is described by the electrostatics-mediated intramolecular crosslinking of three types of 3-armed star-shaped polymers (T-P4VP, T-PS-b-P4VP, and T-P4VP-b-PS), whose configuration is tunable from spherical to cage-shaped to dumbbell-shaped and star-shaped.

Long-Life All-Solid-State Batteries Enabled by Cold-Pressed Garnet Composite Electrolytes with Enhanced Li Conduction.

Garnet LiLaZrO (LLZO)-based solid-state electrolytes (SSEs) hold promise for realizing next-generation lithium metal batteries with high energy density. However, the high stiffness of high-temperature sintered LLZO makes it brittle and susceptible to strain during the fabrication of solid-state batteries. Cold-pressed LLZO exhibits improved ductility but suffers from insufficient Li conductivity.

Ultrahigh Energy Storage Performance of BiFeO-BaTiO Flexible Film Capacitor with High-Temperature Stability via Defect Design.

Nanoengineering polar oxide films have attracted great attention in energy storage due to their high energy density. However, most of them are deposited on thick and rigid substrates, which is not conducive to the integration of capacitors and applications in flexible electronics. Here, an alternative strategy using van der Waals epitaxial oxide dielectrics on ultra-thin flexible mica substrates is developed and increased the disorder within the system through high laser flux.

Earth's core-mantle boundary shaped by the crystallization of a hydrous terrestrial magma ocean.

Enigmatic anomalous structures of Earth's lowermost mantle may have been incubated at the hydrous magma ocean of the Hadean eon.

Memristive switching in the surface of a charge-density-wave topological semimetal.

Owing to the outstanding properties provided by nontrivial band topology, topological phases of matter are considered as a promising platform towards low-dissipation electronics, efficient spin-charge conversion, and topological quantum computation. Achieving ferroelectricity in topological materials enables the non-volatile control of the quantum states, which could greatly facilitate topological electronic research. However, ferroelectricity is generally incompatible with systems featuring metallicity due to the screening effect of free carriers.

Spatial evolution of the proton-coupled Mott transition in correlated oxides for neuromorphic computing.

The proton-electron coupling effect induces rich spectrums of electronic states in correlated oxides, opening tempting opportunities for exploring novel devices with multifunctions. Here, via modest Pt-aided hydrogen spillover at room temperature, amounts of protons are introduced into SmNiO-based devices. In situ structural characterizations together with first-principles calculation reveal that the local Mott transition is reversibly driven by migration and redistribution of the predoped protons.

Engineering Nano-Sized Silicon Anodes with Conductive Networks toward a High Average Coulombic Efficiency of 90.2% via Plasma-Assisted Milling.

Si-based anode is considered one of the ideal anodes for high energy density lithium-ion batteries due to its high theoretical capacity of 4200 mAh g. To accelerate the commercial progress of Si material, the multi-issue of extreme volume expansion and low intrinsic electronic conductivity needs to be settled. Herein, a series of nano-sized Si particles with conductive networks are synthesized via the dielectric barrier discharge plasma (DBDP) assisted milling.

Ratiometric SERS quantification of SO vapor based on Au@Ag-Au with Raman reporter as internal standard.

Practical gas sensing application requires sensors to quantify target analytes with high sensitivity and reproducibility. However, conventional surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) sensor lacks reproducibility and quantification arising from variations of "hot spot" distribution and measurement conditions. Here, a ratio-dependent SERS sensor was developed for quantitative label-free gas sensing.

Soft-Hard Janus Nanoparticles Triggered Hierarchical Conductors with Large Stretchability, High Sensitivity, and Superior Mechanical Properties.

There is a long-standing conflict between the large stretchability and high sensitivity for strain sensors, a strategy of decoupling the mechanical/electrical module by constructing the hierarchical conductor has been developed in this study. The hierarchical conductor, consisting of a mechanically stretchable layer, a conductive network layer, and a strongly bonded interface, can be produced in a simple one-step process with the aid of soft-hard Janus nanoparticles (JNPs). The introduction of JNPs in the stretchable layer can evenly distribute stress and dissipate energy due to forming the rigid-flexible homogeneous networks.

A ferroelectric fin diode for robust non-volatile memory.

Among today's nonvolatile memories, ferroelectric-based capacitors, tunnel junctions and field-effect transistors (FET) are already industrially integrated and/or intensively investigated to improve their performances. Concurrently, because of the tremendous development of artificial intelligence and big-data issues, there is an urgent need to realize high-density crossbar arrays, a prerequisite for the future of memories and emerging computing algorithms. Here, a two-terminal ferroelectric fin diode (FFD) in which a ferroelectric capacitor and a fin-like semiconductor channel are combined to share both top and bottom electrodes is designed.

Research and Development of Hydrogen-Fueled Internal Combustion Engines in China.

Energy shortages and environmental problems have brought many challenges to China's development. In the field of transport, hydrogen energy has become a new type of energy that people pay attention to due to its easy production and nonpolluting generation. The use of hydrogen as a fuel in internal combustion engines can be a good way to make a low-cost and clean conversion of the current internal combustion engine, thus realizing the application of hydrogen energy in vehicles.

Guided anisotropic oxygen transport in vacancy ordered oxides.

Anisotropic and efficient transport of ions under external stimuli governs the operation and failure mechanisms of energy-conversion systems and microelectronics devices. However, fundamental understanding of ion hopping processes is impeded by the lack of atomically precise materials and probes that allow for the monitoring and control at the appropriate time- and length- scales. In this work, using in-situ transmission electron microscopy, we directly show that oxygen ion migration in vacancy ordered, semiconducting SrFeO epitaxial thin films can be guided to proceed through two distinctly different diffusion pathways, each resulting in different polymorphs of SrFeO with different ground electronic properties before reaching a fully oxidized, metallic SrFeO phase.

Janus Composite Particles and Interfacial Catalysis Thereby.

Janus composite particles (JPs) with distinct compartmentalization of varied components thus performances and anisotropic shape display a variety of properties and have demonstrated great potentials in diversify practical applications. Especially, the catalytic JPs are advantageous for multi-phase catalysis with much easier separation of products and recycling the catalysts. In the first section of this review, typical methods to synthesize the JPs with varied morphologies are briefly surveyed in the category of polymeric, inorganic and polymer/inorganic composite.

Effect of Dl-3-n-butylphthalide on mitochondrial Cox7c in models of cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury.

Several studies have demonstrated the protective effect of dl-3-n-Butylphthalide (NBP) against cerebral ischemia, which may be related to the attenuation of mitochondrial dysfunction. However, the specific mechanism and targets of NBP in cerebral ischemia/reperfusion remains unclear. In this study, we used a chemical proteomics approach to search for targets of NBP and identified cytochrome C oxidase 7c (Cox7c) as a key interacting target of NBP.

Interface synergism and engineering of Pd/Co@N-C for direct ethanol fuel cells.

Direct ethanol fuel cells have been widely investigated as nontoxic and low-corrosive energy conversion devices with high energy and power densities. It is still challenging to develop high-activity and durable catalysts for a complete ethanol oxidation reaction on the anode and accelerated oxygen reduction reaction on the cathode. The materials' physics and chemistry at the catalytic interface play a vital role in determining the overall performance of the catalysts.

Supramolecular nanofibers protrusion budding interfacial membrane.

We have proposed an approach to achieve nanofibers or composite nanofibers with functional nanoparticles the protrusion of the budding interfacial membrane in an oil-water emulsion droplet stabilized with copolymers. The nanofibers were formed by the wrapping of the monolayer of the copolymers. The length is tunable with the copolymer concentration and water/oil ratio of the emulsion.

Injectable Double-Network Hydrogel-Based Three-Dimensional Cell Culture Systems for Regenerating Dental Pulp.

The regeneration of dental pulp tissue is very important, but difficult, in dentistry. The biocompatibility, water content, and viscoelastic properties of pulp-like tissue must be optimized to achieve the efficient transfer of metabolites and nutrients, a suitable degradation rate, distribution of encapsulated cells, injectability, and gelation under physiological conditions. As promising materials for pulp regeneration, hydrogel scaffolds have been produced to simulate the extracellular matrix and transmit signaling molecules.

Orientation-Controlled Ultralong Assembly of Janus Particles Induced by Bubble-Driven Instant Quasi-1D Interfaces.

Constructing precisely oriented assemblies and exploring their orientation-dependent properties remain a challenge for Janus nanoparticles (JNPs) due to their asymmetric characteristics. Herein, we propose a bubble-driven instant quasi-1D interfacial strategy for the oriented assembly of JNP chains in a highly controllable manner. It is found that the rapid formation of templated bubbles can promote the interfacial orientation of JNPs kinetically, while the confined quasi-1D interface in the curved liquid bridge can constrain the disordered rotation of the particles, yielding well-oriented JNP chains in a long range.

Tingli Dazao Decoction pretreatment ameliorates mitochondrial damage induced by oxidative stress in cardiomyocytes.

Ethnopharmacological Relevance: Tingli Dazao Decoction (TLDZD) recorded in "Synopsis of Prescriptions of the Golden Chamber" is a classical prescription used for the treatment of heart failure nowadays. The studies of TLDZD were mainly focused on clinical practice where the formula was usually combined with other medicinal herbs. Chemical composition and cardiovascular pharmacological research of TLDZD were still insufficient.