An efficient numerical method is developed for modal analysis of twodimensional photonic crystal waveguides. Using the Dirichlet-to-Neumann (DtN) map of the supercell, the waveguide modes are solved from an eigenvalue problem formulated on two boundaries of the supercell, leading to significantly smaller matrices when it is discretized. The eigenvalue problem is linear even when the medium is dispersive. The DtN map of a domain is an operator that maps the wave field on the boundary of the domain to the normal derivative of the field. The DtN map of the supercell can be efficiently calculated by merging the DtN maps of the ordinary and defect unit cells.

In order to confirm the relationship between the luminescence and the ratio of Ce 3+ /Ce 4+ more clearly, a series of YAG:Ce 3+ (Yttrium Aluminum Garnet, Y2.94Al5O12:0.06Ce 3+) phosphors were prepared under different sintering atmosphere. A semi-quantitative analysis based on X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) was introduced to study the mole ratio of Ce 3+ /Ce 4+ in the as-synthesized YAG:Ce 3+ phosphors. The results indicated that the percentage of Ce 3+ /(Ce 3+ + Ce 4+) reached 88.46% under the reduction atmosphere. The emission intensity of YAG:Ce 3+ phosphors was increased significantly with the increasing of Ce 3+ concentration.

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Background Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is characterized by pulmonary vascular remodeling, which can be caused by abnormal proliferation and migration of pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells (PASMCs). Several microRNAs were demonstrated to regulate the PASMC dysfunction. Our study intends to evaluate whether miR-627-5p affects cigarette smoke extract (CSE)-induced aberrant biological behaviors of PASMCs. Methods PASMCs was treated with CSE to create the in vitro cellular model of COPD. The viability and LDH release of PASMCs was detected by CCK-8 assay and LDH release assay. MiR-627-5p and MAP 2 K4 expression in CSE (2%)-treated PASMCs was detected by qRT-PCR. PASMC proliferation was observed under a microscope, and PASMC migration was assessed by Transwell migration assays. The binding of miR-627-5p on MAP 2 K4 was verified by dual-luciferase reporter assay. Protein levels of MAP2K4 and the PI3K/AKT signaling markers were examined by western blotting. Results The viability of PASMCs treated with 2% CSE reached a peak. CSE dose-dependently downregulated miR-627-5p expression in PASMCs. MiR-627-5p overexpression attenuated the CSE-induced abnormal proliferation and migration of PASMCs. However, MAP2K4 overexpression antagonized the effects of miR-627-5p on PASMC dysfunction. Importantly, miR-627-5p inhibited CSE-stimulated activation of the PI3K/AKT pathway via downregulating MAP2K4. Conclusion MiR-627-5p improves CSE-induced abnormal proliferation and migration of PASMCs by inhibiting MAP2K4 expression and the PI3K/AKT pathway.

This paper presents some theoretical and numerical investigations concerning the fast computation of an exterior wave field to a scatterer by the Beam Propagation Method (BPM). Different models are presented and compared. It appears that the approach is able to correctly model the propagation of the propagative modes of the wave field while inaccuracies still remain for the evanescent and transition modes.