Mass Production of Carbon Nanotube Transistor Biosensors for Point-of-Care Tests.

Low-dimensional semiconductor-based field-effect transistor (FET) biosensors are promising for label-free detection of biotargets while facing challenges in mass fabrication of devices and reliable reading of small signals. Here, we construct a reliable technology for mass production of semiconducting carbon nanotube (CNT) film and FET biosensors. High-uniformity randomly oriented CNT films were prepared through an improved immersion coating technique, and then, CNT FETs were fabricated with coefficient of performance variations within 6% on 4-in. wafers (within 9% interwafer) based on an industrial standard-level process. The CNT FET-based ion sensors demonstrated threshold voltage standard deviations within 5.1 mV at each ion concentration, enabling direct reading of the concentration information based on the drain current. By integrating bioprobes, we achieved detection of biosignals as low as 100 aM through a plug-and-play portable detection system. The reliable technology will contribute to commercial applications of CNT FET biosensors, especially in point-of-care tests.

Smart Metasurface for Active and Passive Cooperative Manipulation of Electromagnetic Waves.

Integrating active and passive manipulation of electromagnetic (EM) waves has significant advantages for the caliber synthesis of microwave and optical integrated devices. In previous schemes, most reported designs focus only on active ways of manipulating self-radiating EM waves, such as antennas and lasers, or passive ways of manipulating external incident EM waves, such as lenses and photonic crystals. Here, we proposed a paradigm that integrates active and passive manipulation of EM waves in a reconfigurable way. As demonstrated, circularly polarized, linearly polarized, and elliptically polarized waves with customized beams are achieved in passive operation by merging Pancharatnam-Berry phases and dynamic phases, while the radiating EM waves with a customized gain are achieved by coupling the coding elements with the radiation structure in the active manipulation. Either active or passive manipulation is determined by the sensed signals and operating state to reduce detectability. Encouragingly, the proposed strategy will excite new sensing and communication opportunities, enabling advanced conceptions for next-generation compact EM devices.

Polarization meta-converter for dynamic polarization states shifting with broadband characteristic.

Polarization, as an important property of light, has been widely discussed in modern detecting and radar systems. A polarization converter that can be used to achieve dynamic control is regarded as an excellent alternative for implementing the integrated functionalities of communication and stealth. In this work, we propose a paradigm of meta-converter for dynamic polarization states shifting from linear-to-linear (LTL) to linear-to-circular (LTC) polarization. The strategy is achieved by loading voltage-controlled PIN diodes on the double-arrows metallic meta-resonators. The operation modes can be switched by changing the bias voltage. When the PIN diodes are turned on, the polarization meta-converter (PMC) will reflect and convert a linearly polarized electromagnetic (EM) wave into a circularly polarized one in 5.6-15.5 GHz with an axial ratio (AR) below 3dB. When the PIN diodes are turned off, the PMC will reflect and convert a linearly polarized EM wave into the orthogonal counterpart in 7.6-15.5 GHz with a polarization conversion ratio (PCR) over 88%. Simulations and experimental results show a good agreement, which manifests the feasibility of our proposed meta-converter. Moreover, the proposed PMC has great potential for polarization-dependent communication and stealth systems.

Blood-Enriching Effects and Immune-Regulation Mechanism of Steam-Processed Polygonatum Sibiricum Polysaccharide in Blood Deficiency Syndrome Mice.

Polygonatum sibiricum Red. has been used as a medicinal herb and nutritional food in traditional Chinese medicine for a long time. It must be processed prior to clinical use for safe and effective applications. However, the present studies mainly focused on crude Polygonatum sibiricum (PS). This study aimed to investigate the chemical properties, blood-enriching effects and mechanism of polysaccharide from the steam-processed Polygonatum sibiricum (SPS), which is a common form of PS in clinical applications. Instrumentation analyses and chemistry analyses revealed the structure of SPS polysaccharide (SPSP). A mice model of blood deficiency syndrome (BDS) was induced by acetylphenylhydrazine (APH) and cyclophosphamide (CTX). Blood routine test, spleen histopathological changes, serum cytokines, etc. were measured. The spleen transcriptome changes of BDS mice were detected by RNA sequencing (RNA-seq). The results showed that SPSP consists predominantly of Gal and GalA together with fewer amounts of Man, Glc, Ara, Rha and GlcN. It could significantly increase peripheral blood cells, restore the splenic trabecular structure, and reverse hematopoietic cytokines to normal levels. RNA-seq analysis showed that 122 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were obtained after SPSP treatment. GO and KEGG analysis revealed that SPSP-regulated DEGs were mainly involved in hematopoiesis, immune regulation signaling pathways. The reliability of transcriptome profiling was validated by quantitative real-time PCR and Western blot, and the results indicated that the potential molecular mechanisms of the blood-enriching effects of SPSP might be associated with the regulating of JAK1-STAT1 pathway, and elevated the hematopoietic cytokines (EPO, G-CSF, TNF-α and IL-6). This work provides important information on the potential mechanisms of SPSP against BDS.

Ultra-wideband RCS reduction based on coupling effects between beam diffuse and absorptive structures.

A hybrid design method for broadband radar cross section (RCS) reduction is proposed and successfully demonstrated based on the coupling effects between diffuse and absorptive structures. The reflection energy is distributed into more directions away from the source direction by the one-bit diffuse coding metasurface (CM). The two-layer resistive frequency selective surface (RFSS) is employed in the one-bit CM structure, reducing the amplitude of the co- and cross-polarized reflected waves under circularly polarized wave incidence by converting it into ohmic loss. In addition, the bandwidth of RCS reduction is further broadened through the coupling effects between the metallic patterns and the two-layer RFSS. The coupling effect shows that the absorption rate of the composite structure is significantly improved compared to the only RFSS structure. A lightweight CM loaded with RFSS (the area density is 597 g/m2) was fabricated, analyzed, simulated, and measured. The results show that the proposed mechanism can effectively break the bandwidth constraints of traditional diffusion and absorption methods. Furthermore, the proposed mechanism significantly expands the bandwidth of RCS reduction. The proposed metasurface can achieve a 10 dB RCS reduction in an ultra-wideband from 7.3 to 44.2 GHz with about 143.3% fractional bandwidth. Moreover, the metasurface also has good performances under wide-angle oblique incidences. Under the condition of maintaining lightweight, the design provides an idea for broadening the frequency band.

Active circular dichroism coding meta-mirror for flexible beam-forming and dynamic amplitude control.

Equipped with the capability of simultaneous phase and amplitude modulation, the chiral metasurfaces have broken through the weak chiroptical responses of natural media, giving birth to a number of unprecedented phenomena. However, the performance of passive metasurface is inadequate to realize dynamic manipulation to fit the diverse and changeable operation requirements, which would damage their engineering applications. Here, a circular dichroism meta-mirror consisting of Archimedean spiral-based meta-atoms is proposed to achieve dynamic scattering modulation. Combining the strategy of loading active element, the chiroptical responses of a metasurface is smoothly controlled. By controlling bias voltages, continuous scattered reflection amplitude steering can be achieved for the designated spin state while the orthogonal spin state can hardly be influenced. With the assistance of Pancharatnam-Berry phase principle, the metasurface possesses the capability of tailoring waves in coded manner. We experimentally verify the proposed strategy by a 1-bit checkerboard meta-mirror for four-beam scattering pattern. Importantly, the proposed paradigm may find applications in spin-sensitive systems and adaptive camouflage.

Absorptive frequency selective surface with two alternately switchable transmission/reflection bands.

The traditional frequency selective surface (FSS) needs further improvement with the development of stealth technology, and the design of multifunctional FSSs is essential. In this letter, an active absorptive FSS (AFSS) has been designed based on the absorption structure of the spoof surface plasmon polariton (SSPP) and the switching activity of the active FSS. The active FSS embedded with PIN diodes realizes the shift of two transmission/reflection frequency bands by controlling the bias voltage of the feed network, which switches from one band-pass response (at around 3.06 GHz) to the other (at around 4.34 GHz). And when one of the transmission windows switches to the other, the original transmission window closes. The upper plasmonic structure achieves a continuous and efficient absorption band from 6.31 to 8.34 GHz. A sample was also fabricated and carried out to verify the numerical simulation, and the experimental and simulation results are consistent. This work provides new ideas for the design of active AFSS and promotes its application in common aperture radome, antenna isolation, and electromagnetic shielding.

Rare earth metal-organic complexes constructed from hydroxyl and carboxyl modified arenesulfonate: syntheses, structure evolutions, and ultraviolet, visible and near-infrared luminescence.

The reaction of 2-hydroxyl-4-carboxylbenzenesulfonic acid (H3L) and rare earth (RE) metal nitrates together with two N-heterocyclic ligands gives rise to the formation of 38 complexes, namely, [La(H2L)2(ox)0.5(H2O)4]n·2nH2O (1-La) (ox = oxalate), [RE2(H2L)2 (ox)(H2O)12]·2(H2L)·8H2O (2-RE) (RE = Nd, Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy), [RE(SO4)(H2O)7]·(H2L)·3H2O (3-RE) (RE = Ho, Er, Tm, Yb, Lu and Y), [RE(L)(H2O)3]n·nH2O (4-RE) (RE = Er, Tm, Yb and Lu), [RE(L)(2,2'-bipy)(H2O)]n (5-RE) (RE = La, Pr, Nd, Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho and Y, 2,2'-bipy = 2,2'-bipyridine), [RE(L)(1,10-phen)(H2O)]n (6-RE) (RE = La, Pr, Nd, Sm, Eu, 1,10-phen = 1,10-phenanthroline), and [RE(L')(1,10-phen)2(H2O)]n (7-RE) (RE = Gd, Tb, Ho, Er, Yb and Lu, H3L' = 2-hydroxy-3-nitro-4-carboxybenzenesulfonic acid), which have been characterized by elemental analysis, IR, TG, PL, powder and single-crystal X-ray diffraction. Complexes 1-La, 2-RE and 3-RE present zigzag chain, di- and mono-nuclear structures, in which H2L- acts as a counterion and monodentate and µ2-bridging monoanions. For the three species, light RE metal cations tend to induce the formation of oxalate while heavy RE metal cations tend to induce the formation of sulfate. Complexes 4-RE and 5-RE exhibit layer structures incorporating helical chains, in which the L3- trianion presents µ3 and µ4 coordination modes. Complexes 6-RE containing light RE metal cations show layer structures incorporating helical chains, while complexes 7-RE containing heavy RE metal cations have helical chain structures supported by the bridging of in situ generated L'3-. Remarkably, the in situ generated oxalates in 1-La and 2-RE, as well as the in situ generated L'3- in 7-RE, also play a crucial role in determining the structures of these complexes. Structure evolutions make these complexes present various luminescent emissions. Complexes 3-Tm, 3-Yb, 3-Lu, 3-Y and 4-Lu exhibit ultraviolet emissions from 354 to 370 nm. Complexes 1-La and 6-La present blue emissions at 442 and 463 nm. Complexes 2-Eu, 2-Tb, 5-Tb and 7-Tb exhibit characteristic red and green emissions while the complex 5-Y presents a green emission at 501 nm. Meanwhile, complexes 2-Nd, 3-Yb, 4-Yb, 5-Nd, 6-Nd, and 7-Yb show near-infrared (NIR) emissions. Moreover, 2-Eu, 2-Tb, 5-Tb, 7-Tb and 5-Y show longer luminescence lifetimes from 390.47 to 1211.57 µs.

Cation radii induced structural variation in fluorescent alkaline earth networks constructed from tautomers of a nucleobase analogue.

Nucleobase tautomers and their metal complexes have attracted considerable attention due to their fascinating architectures along with wide applications. In this paper, 4,6-dihydroxypyrimidine (H(2)DHP), an analogue of uracil and thymine, was employed to react with the vital elements of alkaline earth metals in an aqueous solution and lead to the formation of four novel complexes, [Mg(HDHP)(2) (H(2)O)(4)] (1), [Ca(HDHP)(2)(H(2)O)(3)](n)·nH(2)O (2), [Sr(HDHP)(2)(H(2)O)(3)](n)·nH(2)O (3), and [Ba(HDHP)(2)(H(2)O)(2)](n)·nH(2)O (4), which have been characterized by elemental analysis, IR, TG, UV-Vis, PL, powder and single-crystal X-ray diffraction and progressively evolve from zero-dimensional (0D) mononuclear, one-dimensional (1D) zig-zag double chain, two-dimensional (2D) double layer, to a three-dimensional (3D) porous network along with the increase of cation radii. This tendency in dimensionality follows salient crystal engineering principles and can be explained by considering factors such as hard-soft acid-base principles and cation radii. The deprotonated H(2)DHP ligand exhibits four new coordination modes, namely, O-monodentate (complex 1), N,O-chelating (complexes 2 and 3), O,O-bridging (complexes 2 and 3), and κ(1)O:κ(2)O-bridging mode (complex 4). Interestingly, the structural investigation indicates that the HDHP(-) monoanion shows three unusual types of tautomers, which are essential for the diagnosis of disease and investigation of medicine. Furthermore, the four complexes exhibit strong blue emission compared to free H(2)DHP ligand at room temperature and may be potential candidates for blue fluorescent biological materials used in organisms.

Penta-aqua-(4,6-dihy-droxy-benzene-1,3-disulfonato-κO(1))zinc penta-hydrate.

The Zn(II) atom in the title complex, [Zn(C(6)H(4)O(8)S(2))(H(2)O)(5)]·5H(2)O, is coordinated by five water mol-ecules and an O atom of a 4,6-dihy-droxy-benzene-1,3-disulfonate dianion. The coord-ination geometry is distorted octa-hedral, with the Zn-O(sulfonate) bond relatively long compared to the Zn-O(water) bonds. The coordinated and lattice water mol-ecules inter-act with each other and with the hy-droxy groups and sulfonate ligand through O-H⋯O hydrogen bonds, generating a tightly held three-dimensional network.

New family of silver(I) complexes based on hydroxyl and carboxyl groups decorated arenesulfonic acid: syntheses, structures, and luminescent properties.

Self-assembly of silver(I) salts and three ortho-hydroxyl and carboxyl groups decorated arenesulfonic acids affords the formation of nine silver(I)-sulfonates, (NH(4))·[Ag(HL1)(NH(3))(H(2)O)] (1), {(NH(4))·[Ag(3)(HL1)(2)(NH(3))(H(2)O)]}(n) (2), [Ag(2)(HL1)(H(2)O)(2)](n) (3), [Ag(2)(HL2)(NH(3))(2)]·H(2)O (4), [Ag(H(2)L2)(H(2)O)](n) (5), [Ag(2)(HL2)](n) (6), [Ag(3)(L3)(NH(3))(3)](n) (7), [Ag(2)(HL3)](n) (8), and [Ag(6)(L3)(2)(H(2)O)(3)](n) (9) (H(3)L1 = 2-hydroxyl-3-carboxyl-5-bromobenzenesulfonic acid, H(3)L2 = 2-hydroxyl-4-carboxylbenzenesulfonic acid, H(3)L3 = 2-hydroxyl-5-carboxylbenzenesulfonic acid), which are characterized by elemental analysis, IR, TGA, PL, and single-crystal X-ray diffraction. Complex 1 is 3-D supramolecular network extended by [Ag(HL1)(NH(3))(H(2)O)](-) anions and NH(4)(+) cations. Complex 2 exhibits 3-D host-guest framework which encapsulates ammonium cations as guests. Complex 3 presents 2-D layer structure constructed from 1-D tape of sulfonate-bridged Ag1 dimers linked by [(Ag2)(2)(COO)(2)] binuclear units. Complex 4 exhibits 3-D hydrogen-bonding host-guest network which encapsulates water molecules as guests. Complex 5 shows 3-D hybrid framework constructed from organic linker bridged 1-D Ag-O-S chains while complex 6 is 3-D pillared layered framework with the inorganic substructure constructing from the Ag2 polyhedral chains interlinked by Ag1 dimers and sulfonate tetrahedra. The hybrid 3-D framework of complex 7 is formed by L3(-) trianions bridging short trisilver(I) sticks and silver(I) chains. Complex 8 also presents 3-D pillared layered framework, and the inorganic layer substructure is formed by the sulfonate tetrahedrons bridging [(Ag1O(4))(2)(Ag2O(5))(2)](∞) motifs. Complex 9 represents the first silver-based metal-polyhedral framework containing four kinds of coordination spheres with low coordination numbers. The structural diversities and evolutions can be attributed to the synthetic methods, different ligands and coordination modes of the three functional groups, that is, sulfonate, hydroxyl and carboxyl groups. The luminescent properties of the nine complexes have also been investigated at room temperature, especially, complex 1 presents excellent blue luminescence and can sensitize Tb(III) ion to exhibit characteristic green emission.

4-Amino-pyridinium-3-sulfonate monohydrate.

The reaction of 4-amino-pyridine and oleum yielded the title hydrated zwitterion, C(5)H(6)N(2)O(3)S·H(2)O. There are two formula units in the asymmetric unit. The H and non-H atoms of both zwitterions lie on a mirror plane except for one sulfonate O atom. The water mol-ecules are also situated on a mirror plane. In the crystal, the zwitterions and water mol-ecules are linked by O-H⋯O and N-H⋯O hydrogen bonds, generating a three-dimensional network.

4-Hy-droxy-pyridinium-3-sulfonate.

The reaction of 4-hy-droxy-pyridine and oleum produces 4-hy-droxy-pyridinium-3-sulfonate, C(5)H(5)NO(4)S, which shows delocalized bonds in the six-membered ring. In the crystal, adjacent zwitterions are linked by N-H⋯O and O-H⋯O hydrogen bonds into a layer motif. The crystal studied was a racemic twin.

A series of silver(I) pyridone-sulfonates with 1-D "butterfly" chain, 2-D lamellar network and 3-D pillared layered frameworks: syntheses, structures and characterizations.

A series of silver(I) pyridone-sulfonates, namely [Ag5(HL1)3(NO3)2(H2O)]n (1) [Ag2(HL1)2]n.2nH2O (2), [Ag2(HL1)(NO3)]n (3), and [Ag3(HL2)2(NO3)(H2O)]n (4) (HL1 = 4(1H)-pyridone-3-sulfonate monoanion, HL2 = 2(1H)-pyridone-5-sulfonate monoanion), have been synthesized and characterized by elemental analyses, IR, TG, PL and X-ray analyses. Complex 1, which exhibits a novel continuous silver polyhedral framework containing four kinds of coordination spheres, has been recently reported. Complex 2 presents the first one-dimensional (1-D) "butterfly" array composed of SO3-bridged columns of Ag(I) ions and symmetric pendant organic groups in silver(I) sulfonates, while complex 3 possesses a two-dimensional (2-D) layer structure in which the inorganic network substructure consists of helical chains of edge-sharing Ag1 distorted octahedra linked through dimers of edge-sharing Ag2 distorted anti-trigonal prisms by sharing two corners and two edges. Replacing H2L1 by H2L2 leads to the formation of complex 4, a three-dimensional (3-D) pillared layered framework, which is also extended by the rare mu4 nitrate anion. In complexes 1-4, all the inorganic parts can be considered as being built up from versatile polyhedra of silver(I) centers by sharing corners, edges or faces. The sulfonic group shows some novel coordination modes, which is first reported here. Solid-state fluorescence quenching and thermal stability are discussed for all of these complexes.

The first continuous silver polyhedra framework containing four kinds of coordination spheres.

The first continuous silver polyhedra framework containing four kinds of coordination spheres has been successfully prepared by the reaction of silver(I) nitrate and 4(1H)-pyridone-3-sulfonic acid. This polyhedra framework is constructed from four kinds of silver(I) polyhedra by sharing corners, edges and faces.

Tetra-aqua-bis(2-oxo-1,2-dihydro-pyridine-5-sulfonato-κO)zinc(II).

The metal atom in the title compound, [Zn(C(5)H(4)NO(4)S)(2)(H(2)O)(4)], lies on a center of inversion and is linked to the anionic ligand through the carbonyl O atom. In the crystal structure, the 2-oxo-1,2-dihydro-pyridine-5-sulfon-ate ligand inter-acts with other mol-ecules through N-H⋯O and O-H⋯O hydrogen bonds, forming a three-dimensional network structure.

Hexaaqua-zinc(II) bis-(4-hydroxy-benzene-sulfonate) dihydrate.

In the crystal structure of the title compound, [Zn(H(2)O)(6)](C(6)H(5)O(4)S)(2)·2H(2)O, the Zn(II) atom lies on a center of inversion. The complex cation inter-acts with the anion and uncoord-inated water mol-ecules by O-H⋯O hydrogen bonds, generating a three-dimensional network. The anion is disordered over two equal positions along the hydr-oxy-sulfonate C-C axis.

Diaqua-bis(4-oxo-1,4-dihydro-pyridine-3-sulfonato-κO,O)zinc(II).

In the crystal structure of the title compound, [Zn(C(5)H(4)NO(4)S)(2)(H(2)O)(2)], the 4-oxo-1,4-dihydro-pyridine-3-sulfonate anion chelates to water-coordinated zinc centres through the carbonyl O atom and through one O atom of the sulfonate group. The Zn(II) atom lies on a center of inversion, and adjacent mol-ecules are linked by N-H⋯O and O-H⋯O hydrogen bonds, forming a three-dimensional network.

Ethane-1,2-diammonium naphthalene-1,5-disulfonate.

In the crystal structure of the title salt, C(2)H(10)N(2) (2+)·C(10)H(6)O(6)S(2) (2-), both the cation and anion lie on special positions of site symmetry. These are linked by N-H⋯O and N-H⋯(O,O) hydrogen bonds, forming a layer structure.

Hydro-nium 4-oxo-1,4-dihydro-pyridine-3-sulfonate dihydrate.

2-Hydroxy-pyridine when treated with concentrated sulfuric acid is sulfonated at the 3-position to yield the title hydrated salt, H(3)O(+)·C(5)H(4)NO(3)S(-)·2H(2)O. In the crystal structure, the cations, anions and uncoordinated water mol-ecules are linked by extensive O-H⋯O and N-H⋯O hydrogen bonds into a three-dimensional network. The crystal studied is a non-merohedral twin with a twin component of 36%.