Search Results (585)

Using advanced optical modelling, we quantify how sinusoidal corrugation and emitter dipole orientation jointly govern light extraction from OLED thin-film stacks into a glass substrate for red, green, and blue emission. Irrespective of emission colour, the corrugation aspect ratio (AR = height/period) is the dominant geometric parameter controlling extraction, with absolute period and height playing secondary roles, as periods of 600–1000 nm deliver similar gains across all colours. Extraction peaks at AR ≈ 0.2 for predominantly horizontal dipoles, AR ≈ 0.5 for vertical dipoles, and AR ≈ 0.3 for isotropic orientations. For the isotropic case, extraction improves by up to 40%, 34%, and 20% relative to flat red, green, and blue devices, respectively. Absorption analysis attributes the principal gains to suppression of surface-plasmon-polariton losses of vertical dipoles, supported by local dipole reorientation, waveguide disruption, and scattering. Because practical texturing can alter dipole orientation, optimum conditions must be re-evaluated; if orientations follow the sinusoidal profile, an AR of approximately 0.2–0.3 is favoured for isotropic to moderately horizontal orientations, whereas higher ARs benefit strongly vertical orientations. The results provide guidelines for co-optimising corrugation geometry and dipole orientation for high-efficiency OLEDs. Full article

Modern agriculture has to alleviate extremes in water demand and/or water waste. In this regard, this work showcases how soil moisture instruments can be combined with low-end microcontrollers, energy-efficient communication protocols, single-board computers, flow and pressure sensors, and purpose-built actuators to form a synergistic platform able to generate and study realistic irrigation scenarios. These scenarios, potentially emulating anomalies such as clogged emitters or pipe leaks with a satisfactory time granularity of a few minutes, provide valuable data that pave the way for the creation of intelligent models intercepting water misuse events and/or irrigation failures. The proposed system utilizes widely available, well-documented, low-cost components to form a functioning whole which is optimized for outdoor, low-power, low-maintenance and long-term operation and is accessible remotely via typical end-user devices. Two drip irrigation points were set up, each having a TEROS 12 and a TEROS 10 instrument placed at different depths, while a prototype water flow/pressure control and report system was developed. All modules sent data in real time, via LoRa, to a central node implemented using a Raspberry Pi for further processing and to make them widely available via common network infrastructures, also provisioning for remote scenario invocation. The system does not claim to achieve specific irrigation water savings, but it contributes to maintaining/increasing the benefits of modern irrigation practices (such as drip irrigation). This goal is served by emulating a wide variety of irrigation events and by gathering and studying the corresponding data. These multimodal data are collected at a frequency of a few minutes, reflecting key irrigation-specific parameters with an accuracy better than or equal to 3%. The exact steps for specific hardware and software component interoperation are clearly explained, allowing other teams of researchers and/or university educators worldwide to be inspired and benefit from platform replication. Full article

Insulated-gate bipolar transistor (IGBT) power modules suffer efficiency degradation at elevated operating junction temperatures. The thermal sensitivity of the collector–emitter saturation voltage (V_CEsat) induces thermal stress imbalance, constraining system efficiency and reliability. A multi-resistor cascade network model for carrier-storage trench-gate IGBTs (CS-IGBTs) is established. The simulation results agree with the measurements within 10% error. The model decomposes the temperature coefficient contributions of individual structural regions. Analysis reveals that the drift region resistance dominates the V_CEsat temperature coefficient. Based on this finding, a co-doping strategy is proposed through simultaneously increasing the doping concentration in the carrier-storage layer and P⁺ collector. This approach reduces the temperature sensitivity of carrier mobility in the drift region, thereby optimizing V_CEsat’s temperature sensitivity. For the fabricated 1200 V/40 A CS-IGBT, the V_CEsat temperature coefficient decreases from 2.38 mV/K to 1.76 mV/K over 300 K to 450 K, which represents a 25.4% reduction. The total switching loss at 450 K decreases from 9.32 mJ to 8.70 mJ, achieving a 6.7% improvement. This device-level optimization suppresses V_CEsat’s temperature sensitivity and switching losses, enhancing efficiency in high-temperature power module applications. Full article

The increasing demand for ion beams heavier than protons—particularly carbon and helium ions—for cancer therapy has driven the development of advanced accelerator technologies. Although proton therapy is well established, its physical properties limit its effectiveness against certain tumor types, thereby motivating the use of ions with higher linear energy transfer (LET) and greater biological effectiveness. This study presents the design of an Alvarez-type linear accelerator configuration that combines a Quasi-Alvarez Drift Tube Linac (QA-DTL) and a conventional Alvarez Drift Tube Linac (DTL). The proposed systems are intended for accelerating and injecting carbon or helium ions into a cancer therapy synchrotron, as well as accelerating helium ions for radioisotope production. The optimized QA-DTL and DTL structures provide a versatile and efficient solution for future particle therapy facilities, addressing the growing demand for compact, high-performance, and multifunctional accelerator systems. The proposed linac configurations are designed to operate at 352.2 MHz and consist of three sections. For accelerating low-velocity ions, the first section is a QA-DTL, which is the only section powered during the injection of carbon or helium ions (depending on configuration) into the therapy synchrotron at the energy of 5 MeV/u. The QA-DTL is followed by two DTL cavities forming the second and third sections, which further accelerate helium ions to energies of up to 7.1 MeV/u and 10 MeV/u, respectively. The energy of 7.1 MeV/u is chosen because it represents the production threshold of ²¹¹At, one of the most promising alpha emitters for targeted alpha therapy. Full article

The transport sector is among the largest final energy consumers and greenhouse gas (GHG) emitters in the European Union. Consequently, reducing energy-related externalities has become a central objective in the EU’s sustainability and decarbonisation policies. This study quantifies the disutility costs associated with energy consumption and emissions across major passenger transport modes—cars, buses, and trains—using a harmonised dataset encompassing 28 EU countries. To do so, a comprehensive disutility cost framework is established, integrating time losses, monetary costs, infrastructure requirements, noise, local air pollutants, and GHG emissions, and combining correlation, regression, and clustering analyses. The results indicate that car transport incurs the highest transport disutility costs, primarily due to congestion-related energy inefficiencies and GHG emissions. In contrast, rail transport demonstrates the lowest cost, energy- and emission-related disutilities across most EU countries. Bus transport represents an intermediate solution, providing lower emission intensity compared to cars but exhibiting higher energy-related disutilities than rail systems. The findings highlight that a modal shift toward rail- and bus-based transport systems can substantially reduce transport-related energy demand, emissions, and income expenses with transport cost at the EU level. While transport innovations and digitalisation may improve system efficiency, their benefits are unevenly distributed, suggesting that energy-focused transport policies should be complemented by measures to ensure inclusive access to low-emission mobility solutions. Full article

Carbon Fiber Reinforced Thermoplastic Polymer (CFRTP) composites, particularly those utilizing Polyetheretherketone (PEEK) matrices, are becoming more demanding in the automotive and aerospace industries because of their outstanding strength, resilience to impact, and capacity for recycling. The employed heating methodology to prepare these materials is important both to improve them through uniform temperature distribution and to manage the energy consumption. The current study aims to address the encountered issues by experimentally comparing the radiative–thermal performance of medium-wave (1.4–2.5 µm) Quartz Tungsten (QTM) and long-wave (3.5–5.5 µm) Ceramic (FFEH) infrared emitters using a modular laboratory-scale heating system. While QTM emitters provided rapid heating rates, they induce significant through-thickness thermal gradients and surface degradation risks due to spectral mismatch with the polymer. In contrast, long-wave Ceramic emitters demonstrate superior spectral compatibility with PEEK, expanding the safe processing window and achieving complete melting at 343 °C with high thermal uniformity and approximately 18% lower effective energy demand compared to QTM systems. Furthermore, the structural integrity of the consolidated laminates has been validated through tensile testing, yielding an average tensile strength of 873 MPa and a tensile modulus of 56.3 GPa. These findings confirm the importance of optimizing the emitter wavelength not only for energy efficiency, but also for ensuring matrix integrity and mechanical performance in high-performance composite manufacturing. Full article

Agriculture and food systems are among the world’s greatest energy consumers and emitters of greenhouse gases (GHGs), highlighting the importance of energy-efficient strategies that maintain a balance between productivity and sustainability. This study used the PRISMA-ScR methodology and the Biblioshiny platform to conduct a systematic review and evaluation of renewable energy integration and digital advances in agriculture and food systems. Fifty-one peer-reviewed research articles published between 2009 and 2025 were examined to determine technology trends, performance outcomes, and adoption challenges. The findings identified two significant innovation pathways: renewable energy technology such as solar-powered irrigation, biogas generation, and agrivoltaic systems, and digital solutions such as precision agriculture, Internet of Things (IoT)-enabled monitoring, and automation. Results indicate yield improvements of 10–25%, irrigation water savings of up to 40%, and yearly GHG emissions reductions of 0.3 to 0.6 tonnes of CO₂ per hectare. However, adoption remains uneven across regions, restricted by infrastructural constraints, capital costs, and inadequate policy support especially in underdeveloped countries. Overall, combining renewable energy and digital technology improves productivity, resource-use efficiency, and environmental performance while promoting various SDGs. Furthermore, integrating these two types of technologies leads to digital economic transformation in agriculture and food systems. These findings show the innovative potential of energy-efficient solutions in enabling sustainable intensification and climate resilience in agriculture. Full article

Efficient and robust energy transfer is fundamental to quantum information processing and light-harvesting technologies. However, conventional systems are often limited by short interaction ranges and high susceptibility to environmental disorder. In this study, we propose and theoretically investigate a topologically protected tripartite energy transfer system based on photonic crystal nanocavities. By utilizing topological corner states as localized interaction nodes and edge states as robust transmission channels, we construct a platform that mediates energy exchange among three distinct quantum emitters. Using the Lindblad master equation formalism, we analyze the spectral dependence of coupling strengths and transfer dynamics. Our results demonstrate that coherent coupling between nearest neighbors is the dominant mechanism driving high-efficiency transport, whereas next-nearest-neighbor interactions can induce destructive interference. Furthermore, compared to bipartite systems, the tripartite configuration exhibits an enhanced cumulative probability for charge separation. Crucially, numerical simulations confirm that the energy transfer efficiency and time remain virtually unaffected by random structural disorder or sharp interface bends, unequivocally validating the topological protection of the system. These findings establish a robust blueprint for scalable quantum interconnects and integrated photonic circuitry. Full article

Drawing on data from Chinese A-share listed companies between 2011 and 2020, this paper explores how corporate digital transformation shapes Green Total Factor Productivity (GTFP) and its underlying components. The findings suggest that digital transformation promotes GTFP by enhancing innovation capability and accounting transparency, while simultaneously reducing financing frictions. However, stricter environmental regulation attenuates these positive effects, particularly with respect to Green Technological Efficiency Change (GTEC). Non-state-owned enterprises, industrial firms, and high-carbon emitters can more effectively leverage digital transformation to enhance their GTFP; however, the negative impact of environmental regulations is also more pronounced among these entities. The interaction between digital transformation and GTFP elevates corporate market value, with this value effect primarily stemming from improvements in GTEC. By decomposing GTFP into Green Technological Change (GTC) and GTEC, this study clarifies the operational pathways of digital transformation and environmental regulations, enriching the theoretical framework for green productivity research. It reveals the channel-specific effects of environmental regulations—namely, their primary modulation of digital transformation’s green enabling role through influencing GTEC rather than GTC—and systematically integrates multiple pathways for enhancing green productivity via digital transformation, green innovation, information transparency, and financing mechanisms. This provides mechanistic guidance for corporate green development strategies. The research highlights digital transformation’s pivotal role in advancing corporate green development, offering practical insights for policymakers and business managers in promoting sustainable development and formulating environmental policies. Full article

As structural engineers face increasing pressure to minimize the embodied carbon of building components, selecting appropriate materials is critical for sustainable design. Thiemission ts study evaluates the life cycle performance of engineered bamboo beams to determine their viability as a low-carbon alternative to traditional timber in structural framing applications. Utilizing OpenLCA software and the Ecoinvent database, a cradle-to-grave analysis was conducted to inform material selection for the Australian construction context. A parametric design study compared two specific bamboo species, Moso and Asper, against traditional Laminated Veneer Lumber (LVL) to identify the optimal material for minimizing environmental impact. The assessment revealed that Asper bamboo beams represent a superior design choice; a 30.74 kg strand-woven functional unit (FU) achieved net-negative emissions of −13.30 kg CO₂e under 2025 conditions. This offers a significant design advantage over traditional LVL options, which are net-positive emitters, and outperforms Moso bamboo, which yielded higher net emissions (+24.60 kg CO₂e) due to lower sequestration rates. Furthermore, dynamic analysis demonstrated the temporal efficiency of this material in the structural life cycle: in the time required for a single Radiata Pine rotation, Asper bamboo completes five growth cycles, storing a net 103.25 kg of CO₂e per functional unit. Confirmed by a sensitivity analysis for robustness, these findings provide quantitative design criteria supporting the integration of Asper bamboo into sustainable building standards and structural specifications. Full article

To address the high-temperature and high-cost challenges of the conventional dry oxidation process in boron diffusion for n-type tunnel oxide passivated contact solar cells, this study proposes a dry–wet–dry mixed oxidation drive-in process for fabricating p-type emitters in TOPCon solar cells. Through systematic investigation of oxidation temperature, O₂/H₂O flow ratio, and oxidation time effects on emitter performance, it is found that mixed oxidation at 1000 °C achieves comparable sheet resistance and doping profiles to dry oxidation at 1050 °C. For our newly developed mixed oxidation process, in which the oxidation temperature is 1000 °C, oxidation time is 80 min with O₂/H₂O flow ratio of 20:1, the same photoelectric conversion efficiency has been achieved. Comparing the data, the mixed oxidation process forms a dry/wet/dry three-layer SiO₂ structure, reducing the oxidation temperature by 50 °C while achieving an average efficiency of 26.02%, comparable to high-temperature dry oxidation. This process not only reduces the thermal budget of quartz tubes and extends equipment service life but also provides a feasible solution for the low-temperature manufacturing of high-efficiency TOPCon solar cells, showing significant industrial application prospects. Full article

The sustained interest in efficient, low-cost, and straightforward-to-manufacture lasers has prompted intense research into organic semiconductor laser emitter materials in recent decades. The main focus of this research is determining the optical gains and losses of amplified spontaneous emission (ASE) in order to describe materials by their amplification signature. A method that has been used for decades as the standard technique for determining gain characteristics is the variable-stripe-length (VSL) method. The success of the VSL method has led to the development of further measurement techniques. These techniques provide a detailed insight into the nature of optical amplification. One such method is the scattered emission profile (SEP) method. In this study, we present an extension of the SEP method, the Diffracted Emission Profile (DEP) method. The DEP method is based on the detection of ASE by partial decoupling of waveguide modes diffracted by a one-dimensional grating integrated into a planar waveguide. Diffraction causes a proportion of the intensity to exit the waveguide, transferring the growth and decay process of the waveguide mode to the transverse mode profile of the diffracted mode. In the present article, an approach to determine the amplification signature of an organic copolymer is presented, utilizing partial decoupled radiation. Full article

Vehicle exhaust gases remain one of the key sources of atmospheric air pollution and pose a serious threat to ecosystems and public health. This study presents an experimental investigation into reducing the toxicity of gasoline internal combustion engine exhaust using ultrasonic waves and infrared (IR) laser exposure. An original hybrid system integrating an ultrasonic emitter and an IR laser module was developed. Four operating modes were examined: no treatment, ultrasound only, laser only, and combined ultrasound–laser treatment. The concentrations of CH, CO, CO₂, and O₂, as well as exhaust gas temperature, were measured at idle and under operating engine speeds. The experimental results show that ultrasound provides a substantial reduction in CO concentration (up to 40%), while IR laser exposure effectively decreases unburned hydrocarbons CH (by 35–40%). The combined treatment produces a synergistic effect, reducing CH and CO by 38% and 43%, respectively, while increasing the CO₂ fraction and decreasing O₂ content, indicating more complete post-oxidation of combustion products. The underlying physical mechanisms responsible for the purification were identified as acoustic coagulation of particulates, oxidation, and photodissociation of harmful molecules. The findings support the hypothesis that combined ultrasonic and laser treatment can enhance real-time exhaust gas purification efficiency. It is demonstrated that physical treatment of the gas phase not only lowers the persistence of by-products but also promotes more complete oxidation processes within the flow. Full article

Actinium-225 (²²⁵Ac) has emerged as a pivotal alpha-emitter in modern radiopharmaceutical therapy, offering potent cytotoxicity with the potential for precise tumour targeting. Accurate, patient-specific image-based dosimetry for ²²⁵Ac is essential to optimize therapeutic efficacy while minimizing radiation-induced toxicity. Establishing a robust dosimetry workflow is particularly challenging due to the complex decay chain, low administered activity, limited count statistics, and the indirect measurement of daughter gamma emissions. Clinical single-photon emission computed tomography/computed tomography protocols with harmonized acquisition parameters, combined with robust volume-of-interest segmentation, artificial intelligence (AI)-driven image processing, and voxel-level analysis, enable reliable time-activity curve generation and absorbed-dose calculation, while reduced mixed-model approaches improve workflow efficiency, reproducibility, and patient-centred implementation. Cadmium zinc telluride-based gamma cameras further enhance quantitative accuracy, enabling rapid whole-body imaging and precise activity measurement, supporting patient-friendly dosimetry. Complementing these advances, the cerium-134/lanthanum-134 positron emission tomography in vivo generator provides a unique theranostic platform to noninvasively monitor ²²⁵Ac progeny redistribution, evaluate alpha-decay recoil, and study tracer internalization, particularly for internalizing vectors. Together, these technological and methodological innovations establish a mechanistically informed framework for individualized ²²⁵Ac dosimetry in targeted alpha therapy, supporting optimized treatment planning and precise response assessment. Continued standardization and validation of imaging, reconstruction, and dosimetry workflows will be critical to translate these approaches into reproducible, patient-specific clinical care. Full article

Tunnel Oxide-Passivated Back Contact solar cells represent a next-generation photovoltaic technology with significant potential for achieving both high efficiency and low cost. This study addresses the challenge of low bifaciality inherent to the rear-side structure of TBC cells. Using the Quokka3 simulation and assuming high-quality surface passivation and fine-line printing accuracy, a systematic optimization was conducted. The optimization encompassed surface morphology, optical coatings, bulk material parameters (carrier lifetime and resistivity), and rear-side geometry (emitter fraction, metallization pattern and gap width). Through a multi-parameter co-optimization process aimed at enhancing conversion efficiency, a simulated conversion efficiency of 27.26% and a bifaciality ratio of 92.96% were achieved. The simulation analysis quantified the trade-off relationships between FF, bifaciality, and efficiency under different parameter combinations. This enables accurate prediction of final performance outcomes when prioritizing different metrics, thereby providing scientific decision-making support for addressing the core design challenges in the industrialization of TBC cells. Full article