Thermodynamic properties of diatomic CO, CN, C₂ and CO⁺ in CO₂-N₂ plasmas

The reliable data of plasma thermodynamic properties are of vital significance for aerodynamic modelling and plasma dynamics simulation. In this work, we have thoroughly evaluated the thermodynamic properties of diatomic CO, CN, C2 and CO+ by making use of a more rigorous approach. The internal energy levels were precisely determined by solving rotational dependence of the radial Schrödinger equation over a set of potential curves. The RKR method was used to generate the low-lying potential curves, while the ab initio results reported by the recent publications were selected for the potential curves of high-lying states. More electronic states were considered in this work than in previous publications, which helps to make the calculated results more accurate at high temperatures. The predicted results were verified by the available values in the recent studies and the relative deviations were systematically evaluated. The maximum relative difference of the equilibrium partition function is less than 7.7% for all species and not larger than 15.3% for equilibrium dimensionless specific heat.</p

A Highly Selective Implantable Electrochemical Fiber Sensor for Real-Time Monitoring of Blood Homovanillic Acid

Homovanillic acid (HVA) is a major dopamine metabolite, and blood HVA is considered as central nervous system (CNS) dopamine biomarker, which reflects the progression of dopamine-associated CNS diseases and the behavioral response to therapeutic drugs. However, facing blood various active substances interference, particularly structurally similar catecholamines and their metabolites, real-time and accurate monitoring of blood HVA remains a challenge. Herein, a highly selective implantable electrochemical fiber sensor based on a molecularly imprinted polymer is reported to accurately monitor HVA in vivo. The sensor exhibits high selectivity, with a response intensity to HVA 12.6 times greater than that of catecholamines and their metabolites, achieving 97.8% accuracy in vivo. The sensor injected into the rat caudal vein tracked the real-time changes of blood HVA, which paralleled the brain dopamine fluctuations and indicated the behavioral response to dopamine increase. This study provides a universal design strategy for improving the selectivity of implantable electrochemical sensors