Chalcogenide Glass-on-Graphene Photonics

Two-dimensional (2-D) materials are of tremendous interest to integrated photonics given their singular optical characteristics spanning light emission, modulation, saturable absorption, and nonlinear optics. To harness their optical properties, these atomically thin materials are usually attached onto prefabricated devices via a transfer process. In this paper, we present a new route for 2-D material integration with planar photonics. Central to this approach is the use of chalcogenide glass, a multifunctional material which can be directly deposited and patterned on a wide variety of 2-D materials and can simultaneously function as the light guiding medium, a gate dielectric, and a passivation layer for 2-D materials. Besides claiming improved fabrication yield and throughput compared to the traditional transfer process, our technique also enables unconventional multilayer device geometries optimally designed for enhancing light-matter interactions in the 2-D layers. Capitalizing on this facile integration method, we demonstrate a series of high-performance glass-on-graphene devices including ultra-broadband on-chip polarizers, energy-efficient thermo-optic switches, as well as graphene-based mid-infrared (mid-IR) waveguide-integrated photodetectors and modulators

Observation of electron-antineutrino disappearance at Daya Bay

The Daya Bay Reactor Neutrino Experiment has measured a non-zero value for the neutrino mixing angle $\theta_{13}$ with a significance of 5.2 standard deviations. Antineutrinos from six 2.9 GW$_{\rm th}$ reactors were detected in six antineutrino detectors deployed in two near (flux-weighted baseline 470 m and 576 m) and one far (1648 m) underground experimental halls. With a 43,000 ton-GW_{\rm th}-day livetime exposure in 55 days, 10416 (80376) electron antineutrino candidates were detected at the far hall (near halls). The ratio of the observed to expected number of antineutrinos at the far hall is $R=0.940\pm 0.011({\rm stat}) \pm 0.004({\rm syst})$. A rate-only analysis finds $\sin^22\theta_{13}=0.092\pm 0.016({\rm stat})\pm0.005({\rm syst})$ in a three-neutrino framework.Comment: 5 figures. Version to appear in Phys. Rev. Let

Insulin Attenuates Beta-Amyloid-Associated Insulin/Akt/EAAT Signaling Perturbations in Human Astrocytes

The excitatory amino acid transporters 1 and 2 (EAAT1 and EAAT2), mostly located on astrocytes, are the main mediators for glutamate clearance in humans. Malfunctions of these transporters may lead to excessive glutamate accumulation and subsequent excitotoxicity to neurons, which has been implicated in many kinds of neurodegenerative disorders including Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Yet, the specific mechanism of the glutamate system dysregulation remains vague. To explore whether the insulin/protein kinase B (Akt)/EAAT signaling in human astrocytes could be disturbed by beta-amyloid protein (Aβ) and be protected by insulin, we incubated HA-1800 cells with varying concentrations of Aβ1–42 oligomers and insulin. Then the alterations of several key substrates in this signal transduction pathway were determined. Our results showed that expressions of insulin receptor, phospho-insulin receptor, phospho-protein kinase B, phospho-mammalian target of rapamycin, and EAAT1 and EAAT2 were decreased by the Aβ1–42 oligomers in a dose-dependent manner (p 0.05), and the mRNA levels of EAAT1 and EAAT2 were also unchanged (p > 0.05). Taken together, this study indicates that Aβ1–42 oligomers could cause disturbances in insulin/Akt/EAAT signaling in astrocytes, which might be responsible for AD onset and progression. Additionally, insulin can exert protective functions to the brain by modulating protein modifications or expressions

N-(5-Amino-1H-tetra­zol-1-yl)formamide

In the title compound, C2H4N6O, the planar [maximum deviation = 0.006 (2) Å] amino­tetra­zole group makes a dihedral angle of 83.65 (8)° with the formamide unit. In the crystal structure, inter­molecular N—H⋯N, N—H⋯O and C—H⋯N hydrogen bonds are responsible for the formation of a three-dimensional network

Measurement of the e+e−→π+π−\mathrm e^+\mathrm e^-\rightarrow\mathrm\pi^+\mathrm\pi^- Cross Section between 600 and 900 MeV Using Initial State Radiation

We extract the $e^+e^-\rightarrow \pi^+\pi^-$ cross section in the energy range between 600 and 900 MeV, exploiting the method of initial state radiation. A data set with an integrated luminosity of 2.93 fb$^{-1}$ taken at a center-of-mass energy of 3.773 GeV with the BESIII detector at the BEPCII collider is used. The cross section is measured with a systematic uncertainty of 0.9%. We extract the pion form factor $|F_\pi|^2$ as well as the contribution of the measured cross section to the leading order hadronic vacuum polarization contribution to $(g-2)_\mu$. We find this value to be $a_\mu^{\pi\pi,\rm LO}(600-900\;\rm MeV) = (368.2 \pm 2.5_{\rm stat} \pm 3.3_{\rm sys})\cdot 10^{-10}$.Comment: 14 pages, 7 figures, accepted by PL

Evidence for e+e−→γχc1,2e^+e^-\to\gamma\chi_{c1, 2} at center-of-mass energies from 4.009 to 4.360 GeV

Using data samples collected at center-of-mass energies of $\sqrt{s}$ = 4.009, 4.230, 4.260, and 4.360 GeV with the BESIII detector operating at the BEPCII collider, we perform a search for the process $e^+e^-\to\gamma\chi_{cJ}$ $(J = 0, 1, 2)$ and find evidence for $e^+e^-\to\gamma\chi_{c1}$ and $e^+e^-\to\gamma\chi_{c2}$ with statistical significances of 3.0$\sigma$ and 3.4$\sigma$, respectively. The Born cross sections $\sigma^{B}(e^+e^-\to\gamma\chi_{cJ})$, as well as their upper limits at the 90% confidence level are determined at each center-of-mass energy.Comment: 8 pages, 7 figures, 3 table