Feng Liu

The National Genomics Data Center (NGDC), which is a part of the China National Center for Bioinformation (CNCB), offers a comprehensive suite of database resources to support the global scientific community. Amidst the unprecedented accumulation of multi-omics data, CNCB-NGDC is committed to continually evolving and updating its core database resources through big data archiving, integrative analysis and value-added curation. Over the past year, CNCB-NGDC has expanded its collaborations with international databases and established new subcenters focusing on biodiversity, traditional Chinese medicine and tumor genetics. Substantial efforts have been made toward encompassing a broad spectrum of multi-omics data, developing innovative resources and enhancing existing resources. Notably, new resources have been developed for single-cell omics (scTWAS Atlas), genome and variation (VDGE), health and disease (CVD Atlas, CPMKG, Immunosenescence Inventory, HemAtlas, Cyclicpepedia, IDeAS), biodiversity and biosynthesis (RefMetaPlant, MASH-Ocean) and research tools (CCLHunter). All resources and services are publicly accessible at https://ngdc.cncb.ac.cn.

Abstract The hydroboration of alkynes into vinylboronate esters is a vital transformation, but achieving high chemoselectivity of targeted functional groups and an appreciable turnover number is a considerable challenge. Herein, we develop two dynamically regulating dual-catalytic-site copper clusters (Cu 4 NC and Cu 8 NC) bearing N-heterocyclic thione ligands that endow Cu 4 NC and Cu 8 NC catalysts with performance. In particular, the performance of microcrystalline Cu 4 NC in hydroboration is characterized by a high turnover number (77786), a high chemoselectivity, high recovery and reusability under mild conditions. Mechanistic studies and density functional theory calculations reveal that, compared with the Cu 8 NC catalyst, the Cu 4 NC catalyst has a lower activation energy for hydroboration, accounting for its high catalytic activity. This work reveals that precisely constructed cluster catalysts with dual catalytic sites may provide a way to substantially improve catalytic properties by fully leveraging synergistic interactions and dynamic ligand effects, thus promoting the development of cluster catalysts.

Primary Mg2Si with a truncated octahedral morphology and size over a range of 8–15 μm were prepared by simultaneously adding Ca and Sb into the Al–Mg–Si melt. It is revealed for the first time that CaSb2 can act as the nucleus of primary Mg2Si during solidification, which changes the morphology and refines the size of primary Mg2Si significantly. It is useful for improving the mechanical properties of the Al–Mg–Si alloy. The skeleton-type growth processes of truncated octahedral primary Mg2Si crystals were identified by observation of the three-dimensional (3-D) morphologies of the crystals extracted from the Al–Mg–Si alloy. The content of Ca and Sb plays an important role in determining the morphologies of primary Mg2Si, which can be transformed from coarse dendrites to defective truncated octahedra and finally to the coexistence of perfect truncated octahedra and flat truncated octahedra with increasing the content from 0 to 0.2 and then to 0.5 wt%. Our study provided a one-step less-cost method to change the morphologies and sizes of primary Mg2Si, which is important to tailor new light-weight alloys with high strength and toughness.

Abstract Lutetium aluminum garnet doped with cerium (LuAG:Ce) thin films have been identified as a promising material for high‐power laser‐driven lighting applications. In this study, spray pyrolysis we employed to fabricate LuAG:Ce films on sapphire substrates and the impact of film thickness on thermal management and light emission efficiency was investigated. Our results show that, regardless of thickness, LuAG:Ce films exhibit impressive internal quantum efficiencies (IQE) exceeding 83.2% and external quantum efficiencies (EQE) surpassing 56.4%, with minimal alteration of luminescent color. Notably, thinner films facilitate more efficient heat dissipation to the underlying sapphire substrate, resulting in superior thermal management and outstanding luminous performance under high‐power laser excitation. Specifically, the thinnest LuAG:Ce film (15.79 μm) exhibited rapid thermal stabilization (~ 130 °C within 30 s) and maintained stability during continuous irradiation lasting 30 min, with a corresponding decrease in luminous flux to 87.9% of its initial value within the first 60 s. This film also demonstrated relatively high and stable conversion efficiency and luminous efficiency, achieving higher saturation thresholds (15 W·mm −2 ) and luminous flux (1070 lm). In contrast, thicker films exhibited a shift in the saturation point toward lower power densities. These findings provide valuable insights for the practical implementation of LuAG:Ce films in advanced lighting technologies.

Abstract The breaking of inversion symmetry dictates the emergence of electric polarization, whose topological states in superlattices and bulks have received tremendous attention for their intriguing physics brought for novel device design. However, as for substrate oxides such as LaAlO 3 , KTaO 3 , R ScO 3 ( R = rare earth element), their centrosymmetric trivial attributes make their functionality poorly explored. Here, the discovery of nanoscale thickness gradient‐induced nonpolar‐to‐polar phase transition in band insulator DyScO 3 is reported by using atomic resolution transmission electron microscopy. As the free‐standing specimen reduces to a critical thickness ≈5 nm, its inversion symmetry is spontaneously broken by surface charge transfer, which gives rise to asymmetric Dy atomic displacements and ferrodistortive octahedral order, as substantiated by the first‐principles calculations. Apart from the observation of migratable polar vortex structures, the switchable electric polarization by applied electric field is demonstrated by the piezoresponse force microscopy experiments. Given the decisive role of critical size in generating ferroelectricity, a concept of “inverse size‐scaling ferroelectric” is proposed to define a class of such materials. Distinct from the proper and improper ferroelectrics, the findings offer a new platform to explore novel low‐dimensional ferroelectrics and device applications in the future.