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  1. Studying the Brownian motion of fibers and semi-flexible filaments in porous media is the key to understanding the transport and mechanical properties in a variety of systems. The motion of semi-flexible filaments in gel-like porous media including polymer networks and cell cytoskeleton has been studied theoretically and experimentally, whereas the motion of these materials in packed-colloid porous media, advanced foams, and rock-like systems has not been thoroughly studied. Here we use video microscopy to directly visualize the reptation and transport of intrinsically fluorescent, semiflexible, semiconducting single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) in the sub-micron pores of packed colloids as fixed obstacles of packed-colloid porous media. By visualizing the filament motion and Brownian diffusion at different locations in the pore structures, we study how the properties of the environment, like the pore shape and pore structure of the porous media, affect SWCNT mobility. These results show that the porous media structure controls SWCNT reorientation during Brownian diffusion. In packed-colloid pores, SWCNTs diffuse along straight pores and bend across pores; conversely, in gel pores, SWCNTs consistently diffuse into curved pores, displaying a faster parallel motion. In both gel and packed-colloid porous media, SWCNT finite stiffness enhances SWCNT rotational diffusion and prevents jamming, allowing for inter-pore diffusion. 
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  2. null (Ed.)
    This paper reports the fabrication of β-Ga 2 O 3 nanomembrane (NM) based flexible photodetectors (PDs) and the investigation of their optoelectrical properties under bending conditions. Flexible β-Ga 2 O 3 NM PDs exhibited reliable solar-blind photo-detection under bending conditions. Interestingly, a slight shifting in wavelength of the maximum solar-blind photo-current was observed under the bending condition. To investigate the reason for this peak shifting, the optical properties of β-Ga 2 O 3 NMs under different strain conditions were measured, which revealed changes in the refractive index, extinction coefficient and bandgap of strained β-Ga 2 O 3 NMs due to the presence of nano-sized cracks in the β-Ga 2 O 3 NMs. The results of a multiphysics simulation and a density-functional theory calculation for strained β-Ga 2 O 3 NMs showed that the conduction band minimum and the valence band maximum states were shifted nearly linearly with the applied uniaxial strain, which caused changes in the optical properties of the β-Ga 2 O 3 NM. We also found that nano-gaps in the β-Ga 2 O 3 NM play a crucial role in enhancing the photoresponsivity of the β-Ga 2 O 3 NM PD under bending conditions due to the secondary light absorption caused by reflected light from the nano-gap surfaces. Therefore, this research provides a viable route to realize high-performance flexible photodetectors, which are one of the indispensable components in future flexible sensor systems. 
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