Microplastics (MPs) from industrial activities remain far less understood than those from municipal sources, particularly in wastewater systems serving e-waste dismantling. Here, a full-scale wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) dedicated to e-waste dismantling wastewater in Guiyu, China, was investigated through four seasonal sampling campaigns covering its two parallel treatment trains, namely an anaerobic-anoxic-oxic (A/A/O) oxidation ditch-secondary clarification train and an A/A/O oxidation ditch-membrane bioreactor (MBR) train. MPs were quantified and characterized by micro-Raman spectroscopy, and their process fate, source-related fingerprints, co-occurrence with phthalate esters (PAEs) and organophosphate esters (OPEs), and screening-level hazard redistribution were systematically evaluated. The raw influent contained 6637.3 ± 927.4 MPs/L, far exceeding typical levels reported for municipal WWTPs and reaching the upper range of industrial wastewater systems. Although both treatment trains reduced aqueous MP concentrations by 2-3 orders of magnitude, the removed particles were largely transferred to sludge rather than eliminated. E-waste-related engineering polymers dominated the MP assemblage, accounting for 65.7% in the influent and 69.6% in dry sludge. Angular fragments with sharp edges and regular outlines were also consistently abundant, contributing 59.8% and 66.1% of MPs in the influent and dry sludge, respectively. Together with significant positive associations between e-waste-related MPs and multiple high-molecular-weight PAEs and OPEs, these polymeric, morphological, and pollutant-co-occurrence features support an integrated source-fingerprint-based inference for e-waste-related MPs in this WWTP. Screening-level hazard assessment further suggested that wastewater treatment lowered the hazard-weighted MP burden in the aqueous phase but redistributed the dominant burden to sludge. This study provides a process-oriented understanding of MP behavior in a dedicated e-waste wastewater treatment system and highlights that integrated source fingerprints and sludge-phase accumulation should be explicitly considered in the assessment and control of industrial MP pollution.

Chiral assembly of achiral conjugated polymers has emerged as a new avenue to promote (opto)electronic properties and control the angular momentum of charge carriers and photons. Solvent plays a key role in chiral emergence through the lyotropic liquid crystal (LLC) assembly pathway, yet rules underpinning solvent effect remain elusive. Here, we establish a unifying framework linking solvent quality to aggregate structure and supramolecular chirality. Using redox active conjugated polymers as model systems, we reveal two types of solution aggregation: (1) β1 aggregation, defined by fibrillar structures with weak interchain coupling and torsional backbone, promotes LLC-mediated chiral assemblies via formation of helical fibers; (2) β2 aggregation, characterized by stacked fibrils with strong interchain coupling and reduced backbone torsion, suppresses chirality. Temperature-dependent studies show that β2 aggregates revert to β1 upon heating, thus restoring chiral assemblies. Extending to 6 conjugated polymers across 37 polymer-solvent-temperature combinations, we demonstrate the universal link between aggregate type and chiral emergence. Further, chemical doping of chiral films derived from β1 aggregates elevates electrical conductivity by up to 100-fold across nine polymer-solvent pairs spanning a wide range of processing conditions. These findings reveal general principles for solvent-guided chiral assembly enabling high-performance chiral electronics, optoelectronics and spintronics.

Topological phenomena, first studied in solid state physics, have seen increased interest for applications in nanophotonics owing to highly controllable light confinement with inherent robustness to defects. Photonic crystals can be designed to host topologically protected interface states for directional light transport, localization and robust lasing via tuning of the bulk topological invariant. At the same time, van der Waals (vdW) materials, in both their monolayer and quasi-bulk forms, emerge as exciting additions to the field of nanophotonics, with a range of unique optoelectronic properties and intrinsic adherence to any type of host material, allowing fabrication of complex multi-layer structures. We present here a 1D topological photonic platform made from stacked nanostructured and planar layers of quasi-bulk WS2 to achieve Jackiw-Rebbi (JR) interface states between two topologically distinct gratings in the near-infrared range around 750 nm. Such states are measured in the far-field using angle-resolved reflectance contrast spectroscopy and exhibit linewidth of 10 meV and highly directional emission with an angular bandwidth of 8.0°. Subsequent local mapping of the structure via sub-wavelength resolution scattering-type scanning near-field optical microscopy (s-SNOM) reveals strong spatial confinement of the JR state to the interface region between the gratings. Finally, we couple in the JR state the photoluminescence of monolayer WSe2 incorporated in a five-layer vdW grating heterostructure, giving rise to directional enhancement of the excitonic emission of up to 22 times that of uncoupled monolayer, thus demonstrating the potential of the topological interface states for highly directional light emission in addition to light scattering.

In modern manufacturing and engineering, angular displacement sensors are crucial for motion control and feedback systems in Electromechanical equipment. Traditional sensors like resolvers, capacitive, and photoelectric encoders, though high in precision and resolution, face limitations in size, weight, and power supply. In this paper, we report a self-powered angular displacement sensor (SPADS) based on the triboelectric nanogenerator principle and time-grating technology. SPADS features a compact structure composed of a stator and a rotor. The rotor is equipped with a single row of dual-sinusoidal copper electrodes. At the same time, the stator is made of annular fan-shaped copper electrodes covered with a layer of PTFE material. The electrical signals generated by the friction between the stator and different rotor electrodes are modulated with high-frequency excitation pulses to obtain signals with phase containing angular displacement information. High-frequency time pulses serve as the measurement standard to realize the phase detection, and the angular displacement is measured by counting the time pulses. Through simulation and experimental tests, the sensor can achieve a theoretical resolution of 5.18" and a measurement accuracy within the range of ±716". This paper has its significance for reference to miniaturized, efficient, and reliable sensors in the field of intelligent equipment.

Accurate prediction of micro-motion characteristics is essential to the success of space mission operations. In this paper, the lightweight spacecraft is selected as the research object. Firstly, the micro-motion characteristic test device is designed to carry out the micro-motion experiment, and the micro-motion characteristic of the test device is numerically simulated to verify the accuracy of the model compared with test data. On this basis, the angular velocity interferences of different values and different directions are simulated, and it is verified that the transversal initial interference is much larger than the spinning angular velocity interference. The cloud images of transversal angular velocity and precession angle under different transversal initial interferences are calculated. The conclusions have some guiding significance for the influence of initial disturbance on the micro-motion characteristics of lightweight spacecraft.

Diffractive security images, constructed with micro-nano structures, are widely used in anti-counterfeiting due to their inherent high spatial frequency resolution and dynamic color variation. However, traditional diffraction anti-counterfeiting labels (DALs), typically based on acrylic ester materials, are susceptible to counterfeiting due to their simple encryption structures and the limited information capacity of single-channel encryption. Furthermore, in harsh environments such as high temperature or high humidity, they are prone to deformation, which can lead to loss of verification functionality. To address these limitations, we propose constructing eight high-resolution, angular-switchable, independent diffraction images on photosensitive polyurethane (Pho-PU) films through buckling structures that reveal different encrypted images as the viewing angle changes, through sample rotation, or varied illumination. We discuss the designability and controllability of periodic buckling structures and demonstrate how common information and secret keys can be integrated through this angle-multiplexing strategy. This systematic approach to multi-image encryption based on buckling structures provides an effective alternative for fabricating high-security DALs.

The efficient, single-step construction of angular azatetracyclic frameworks bearing vicinal quaternary stereocenters remains a formidable challenge in synthetic chemistry. Herein, we disclose the first borane-catalyzed cascade reorganization of N-cycloalkylidenyl (CAD)-substituted aryl cycloalkylamines that enables rapid access to these architectures. Initiated by B(C6F5)3-mediated α-hydride abstraction, the reaction proceeds through an aza-6π electrocyclization and two successive ring expansions, followed by hydride rebound, to deliver densely functionalized angular/fused azatetracycles with high diastereoselectivity. This designed cascade forges multiple C-C bonds and stereocenters in a single operation and exhibits broad substrate scope and excellent efficiency. Detailed mechanistic investigations, combining experimental results and DFT calculations, support the proposed sequence of hydride abstraction, cyclization, double ring expansion, and hydride rebound.

The non-Boltzmann population of the triplet sublevels in Pt(II)-Schiff base complexes, and other phosphorescent transition metal complexes, exhibits large zero-field splitting (ZFS, ∼25 cm[-1]), preventing a time-resolved electron paramagnetic resonance (TREPR) study. To investigate the intersystem crossing (ISC) electron spin selectivity of the Pt(II) complexes, we attached a perylene unit as a triplet energy acceptor. Our method relies on the conservation of spin angular momentum during the ultrafast intramolecular triplet-triplet energy transfer (TTET) from the metal-to-ligand charge transfer ([3]MLCT) state to the [3]Pery state of the appended perylene unit, which has a small ZFS (0.05 cm[-1]) and can be studied with an X-band TREPR spectrometer. TTET occurs within ∼1 ps. TREPR spectra detected no signal from the native complex, while the modified complex showed the [3]Pery state spectrum with an electron spin polarization (ESP) pattern (e, a, e, a, e, a), distinct from the spin-orbit coupling (SOC)-generated [3]Pery state (e, e, e, a, a, a). Based on the orientation of the two units, the population ratios of the [3]MLCT sublevels were deduced as Px:Py:Pz = 0.58:0.22:0.20 (in acceptor's coordinates). Our approach offers a novel way to deduce the ISC spin selectivity in phosphorescent transition metal complexes.

Quantized vortices are ubiquitous in physics, spanning superconductivity, astrophysics, superfluid condensed matter systems, and nonlinear optics. Yet embedding vorticity into topologically protected nonlinear states has remained a major challenge, with all previously observed corner solitons in higher-order topological insulators (HOTIs) exhibiting only trivial phase distributions. Here, we report on the first realization of stable topological corner vortex solitons in a photonic fractal HOTI. Using an array of laser-written waveguides in the shape of Sierpiński gasket with a controllable distortion, we design linear topological vortex modes, from which nonlinear corner vortex solitons bifurcate. Moreover, we demonstrate that these solitons exhibit exceptional robustness across a broad power range and, unlike vortex solitons in topologically trivial lattices, form without a power threshold. Our results introduce the angular momentum degree of freedom into the physics of topological corner modes, opening prospects for topologically protected vortex-based photonics.