Construction and cosmic-ray test of the new inner drift chamber for BESIII

A new inner drift chamber has been built which can replace the aged part of the BESIII drift chamber when needed. The design of the new inner drift chamber can minimize the ineffective area in the very forward and backward region and hence reduce the background event rate. With this design, the new inner drift chamber is expected to have a longer lifetime and improved performance due to the lower occupancy. The endplates and the cylinder were machined with high precision. Wire stringing was performed after the mechanical structure was assembled, and good quality of wire stringing was ensured by measurement of the tension and leakage current of the wires. After completion of the physical construction of the new chamber, a cosmic-ray test was carried out to test its performance. The results of the cosmic-ray test show that the new inner chamber achieves a spatial resolution of127 μm and a d E/dx resolution of 6.4%, which satisfies the design specifications.     

Oscillations and Collapses of Proto--Neutron Stars

We examine the oscillation and collapse of a relativistic star, e.g., a proto-neutron star, with an equation of state （EOS） which is Mowly changing as driven by, e.g., losing of thermal energy through radiations. We find that the frequency of the fundamental mode of oscillation （radial） will gradually increase then abruptly drop to zero when the star gets close to the point of instability. We also find that for a wide range of configurations on the unstable branch of equilibrium configurations, the collapse is dominated by one unstable mode.     

Subpeaks in the Brillouin loss spectra of distributed fiber-optic sensors

Subpeaks in the Brillouin loss spectra of distributed fiber-optic sensors were observed for what is believed to be the first time and studied. We discovered that the Fourier spectrum of the pulsed signal and the off-resonance oscillation both contributed to subpeaks. The off-resonance oscillation at frequency /v - vB/ is the oscillation in the Brillouin time domain when beat frequency v of the two counterpropagating laser beams does not match local Brillouin frequency vB. This study is important in differentiating the subpeaks from actual strain-temperature peaks.     

Application of 3-D Fluorescence: Characterization of Natural Organic Matter in Natural Water and Water Purification Systems

Natural organic matter (NOM) found in water sources is broadly defined as a mixture of polyfunctional organic molecules, characterized by its complex structure and paramount influence on water quality. Because the inevitable release of pollutants into aquatic environments due to an ineffective control of industrial and agricultural pollution, the evaluation of the interaction of NOM with heavy metals, nanoparticles, organic pollutants and other pollutants in the aquatic environment, has greatly increased. Three-dimensional (3-D) fluorescence has the potential to reveal the interaction mechanisms between NOM and pollutants as well as the source of NOM pollution. In water purification engineering system, the 3-D fluorescence can indicate the variations of NOM composition and gives an effective prediction of water quality as well as the underline water purification mechanisms. Inadequately treated NOM is a cause of precursors of disinfection byproducts (DBPs), posing a potential threat to human health. Effective control and measurement/evaluation of NOM have long been an important factors in the prevention of water pollution. Overall, 3-D fluorescence allows for a rapid identification of organic components thus indicating possible sources of water pollution, mechanisms of pollutant interactions, and possible DBPs formed during conventional treatment of this water. This article reviews the 3-D fluorescence characteristics of NOM in natural water and typical water purification systems. The 3-D fluorescence was effective for indicating the variabilities in NOM composition and chemistry thus providing a better understanding of NOM in natural water system and water engineering system.     

Progress of nanoscience in China

Fast evolving nanoseienees and nanotechnology in China has made it one of the front countries of nanotechnology development. Ill this review, we summarize some most recent progresses in nanoseienee research and nanotechnology development in China. The topics we selected in this article include llano-fabrication, nanocatalysis, bioinspired nanoteehnology, green printing nanotechnology, nanoplasmonics, nanomedicine, nanomaterials and their applications, energy and environmental nanoteehnology, nano EHS （nanosafety）, etc. Most of them have great potentials in applications or application-related key issues in future.     

Growth and vibrational properties of MnOx thin films on Rh(111)

The growth, structures, and vibrational properties of ultrathin manganese oxide films on Rh(111) had been investigated using high-resolution electron energy loss spectroscopy (HREELS), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), low energy electron diffraction (LEED), low energy ion scattering spectroscopy (LEIS) and Auger electron spectroscopy (AES). MnO_x grew in a layer-by-layer fashion on the Rh(111) surface. HREELS phonon features and XPS binding energies showed that an OMnO like tri-layer formed initially. Which was stable on the Rh(111) surface with MnO_x coverage less than one monolayer. At above one monolayer, Mn₃O₄ was preferred as indicated from a four-phonon feature peaked at 13.3, 39, 68 and 83 meV in HREELS. Higher temperature oxidation and annealing were found to improve the long-range order of the MnO_x films.     

A density-functional theory investigation on desorption of O2 on Sn（111） and its comparison with initial oxidation on the X（111） （X=Si,Ge, Sn,Pb） surfaces

<正>The first-principles calculations are performed to investigate the adsorption of O₂ molecules on an Sn（111） 2×2 surface.The chemisorbed adsorption precursor states for O₂ are identified to be along the parallel and vertical channels, and the surface reconstructions of Sn（lll） induced by oxygen adsorption are studied.Based on this,the adsorption behaviours of O₂ on X（111）（X=Si,Ge,Sn,Pb） surfaces are analysed,and the most stable adsorption channels of O₂ on X（111）（X=Si,Ge,Sn,Pb） are identified.The surface reconstructions and electron distributions along the most stable adsorption channels are discussed and compared.The results show that the O₂ adsorption ability declines gradually and the amount of charge transferred decreases with the enhancement of metallicity.     

Improvement of corrosion resistance of AA6061 alloy by tapioca starch in seawater

This study examines the use of tapioca starch for improvement of corrosion resistance of AA6061 alloy in seawater. Gravimetric, potentiodynamic polarization, linear polarization resistance and electrochemical impedance measurements were employed to study the corrosion behavior of AA6061 alloy in seawater. The electrochemical measurements for AA6061 alloy in seawater showed that the presence of tapioca starch significantly decreases the corrosion rates, corrosion current densities (i_corr), and double layer capacitance (C_dl), simultaneously increases the values of polarization resistance (R_p). The inhibition efficiencies increase with increasing of tapioca starch concentration. The Langmuir adsorption isotherm fits well with the experimental data. The nature of adsorption of tapioca starch on the metal surface has also been examined. The analysis of SEM and EDS confirmed the formation of precipitates of tapioca starch on the metal surface, which reduced the overall corrosion reaction.     

Impulsive generalized function synchronization of complex dynamical networks

This Letter investigates generalized function synchronization of continuous and discrete complex networks by impulsive control. By constructing the reasonable corresponding impulsively controlled response networks, some criteria and corollaries are derived for the generalized function synchronization between the impulsively controlled complex networks, continuous and discrete networks are both included. Furthermore, the generalized linear synchronization and nonlinear synchronization are respectively illustrated by several examples. All the numerical simulations demonstrate the correctness of the theoretical results.     

Preparation and surface modification of silicon nanowires under normal conditions

Preparation and surface modification of silicon nanowires (SiNWs) grown by the metal catalyzed solution method under normal conditions (room temperature, 1 atm) had been studied in this paper. Firstly, SiNWs using a simple solution method via electroless metal deposition (EMD) of silver under room temperature, standard pressure had been prepared. The influence of the growth parameters such as solution concentration, etching time on the SiNWs formation had been studied. Secondly, the surface modification of SiNWs with platinum and copper had been investigated. The results indicated that the SiNWs modified with Pt and Cu showed different surface morphologies. Pt modification on SiNWs presented in the form of nanoparticles, whereas Cu modification in the form of membrane. Therefore, the Pt modified SiNWs have more vast surface-to-bulk ratio than the unmodified ones, and SiNWs modified with copper nanoparticles will lead to the smaller surface-to-bulk ratio. So the platinum-modified SiNWs have a promising application in sensors’ field.