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  1. In Machine learning (ML) and deep learning (DL), hyperparameter tuning is the process of selecting the combination of optimal hyperparameters that give the best performance. Thus, the behavior of some machine learning (ML) and deep learning (DL) algorithms largely depend on their hyperparameters. While there has been a rapid growth in the application of machine learning (ML) and deep learning (DL) algorithms to Additive manufacturing (AM) techniques, little to no attention has been paid to carefully selecting and optimizing the hyperparameters of these algorithms in order to investigate their influence and achieve the best possible model performance. In this work, we demonstrate the effect of a grid search hyperparameter tuning technique on a Multilayer perceptron (MLP) model using datasets obtained from a Fused Filament Fabrication (FFF) AM process. The FFF dataset was extracted from the MakerBot MethodX 3D printer using internet of things (IoT) sensors. Three (3) hyperparameters were considered – the number of neurons in the hidden layer, learning rate, and the number of epochs. In addition, two different train-to-test ratios were considered to investigate their effects on the AM process data. The dataset consisted of five (5) dominant input parameters which include layer thickness, build orientation, extrusion temperature, building temperature, and print speed and three (3) output parameters: dimension accuracy, porosity, and tensile strength. RMSE, and the computational time, CT, were both selected as the hyperparameter performance metrics. The experimental results reveal the optimal configuration of hyperparameters that contributed to the best performance of the MLP model. 
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  2. Three-dimensional (3D) printing is implemented for surface modification of titanium alloy substrates with multilayered biofunctional polymeric coatings. Poly(lactic-co- glycolic) acid (PLGA) and polycaprolactone (PCL) polymers were embedded with amorphous calcium phosphate (ACP) and vancomycin (VA) therapeutic agents to promote osseointegration and antibacterial activity, respectively. PCL coatings revealed a uniform deposition pattern of the ACP-laden formulation and enhanced cell adhesion on the titanium alloy substrates as compared to the PLGA coatings. Scanning electron microscopy and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy confirmed a nanocomposite structure of ACP particles showing strong binding with the polymers. Cell viability data showed comparable MC3T3 osteoblast proliferation on polymeric coatings as equivalent to positive controls. In vitro live/dead assessment indicated higher cell attachments for 10 layers (burst release of ACP) as compared to 20 layers (steady release) for PCL coatings. The PCL coatings loaded with the antibacterial drug VA displayed a tunable release kinetics profile based on the multilayered design and drug content of the coatings. Moreover, the concentration of active VA released from the coatings was above the minimum inhibitory concentration and minimum bactericidal concentration, demonstrating its effectiveness against Staphylococcus aureus bacterial strain. This research provides a basis for developing antibacterial biocompatible coatings to promote osseointegration of orthopedic implants. 
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  3. Free, publicly-accessible full text available September 1, 2026
  4. Abstract We report the discovery of three Milky Way satellite candidates: Carina IV, Phoenix III, and DELVE 7, in the third data release of the DECam Local Volume Exploration survey (DELVE). The candidate systems were identified by cross-matching results from two independent search algorithms. All three are extremely faint systems composed of old, metal-poor stellar populations (τ ≳ 10 Gyr, [Fe/H] ≲−1.4). Carina IV (MV = −2.8;r1/2 = 40 pc) and Phoenix III (MV = −1.2;r1/2 = 19 pc) have half-light radii that are consistent with the known population of dwarf galaxies, while DELVE 7 (MV = 1.2;r1/2 = 2 pc) is very compact and seems more likely to be a star cluster, though its nature remains ambiguous without spectroscopic follow-up. The Gaia proper motions of stars in Carina IV ( M = 225 0 830 + 1180 M ) indicate that it is unlikely to be associated with the LMC, while DECam CaHK photometry confirms that its member stars are metal poor. Phoenix III ( M = 52 0 290 + 660 M ) is the faintest known satellite in the extreme outer stellar halo (DGC > 100 kpc), while DELVE 7 ( M = 6 0 40 + 120 M ) is the faintest known satellite withDGC > 20 kpc. 
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    Free, publicly-accessible full text available March 11, 2027
  5. We present a study of the weak lensing inferred matter profiles ΔΣ(R) of 698 South Pole Telescope (SPT) thermal Sunyaev-Zel’dovich effect (tSZE) selected and MCMF optically confirmed galaxy clusters in the redshift range 0.25 <  z <  0.94 that have associated weak gravitational lensing shear profiles from the Dark Energy Survey (DES). Rescaling these profiles to account for the mass dependent size and the redshift dependent density produces average rescaled matter profiles ΔΣ(R/R200c)/(ρcritR200c) with a lower dispersion than the unscaled ΔΣ(R) versions, indicating a significant degree of self-similarity. Galaxy clusters from hydrodynamical simulations also exhibit matter profiles that suggest a high degree of self-similarity, with RMS variation among the average rescaled matter profiles with redshift and mass falling by a factor of approximately six and 23, respectively, compared to the unscaled average matter profiles. We employed this regularity in a new Bayesian method for weak lensing mass calibration that employs the so-called cluster mass posteriorP(M200|ζ̂, λ̂,z), which describes the individual cluster masses given their tSZE (ζ̂) and optical (λ̂,z) observables. This method enables simultaneous constraints on richnessλ-mass and tSZE detection significanceζ-mass relations using average rescaled cluster matter profiles. We validated the method using realistic mock datasets and present observable-mass relation constraints for the SPT×DES sample, where we constrained the amplitude, mass trend, redshift trend, and intrinsic scatter. Our observable-mass relation results are in agreement with the mass calibration derived from the recent cosmological analysis of the SPT×DES data based on a cluster-by-cluster lensing calibration. Our new mass calibration technique offers a higher efficiency when compared to the single cluster calibration technique. We present new validation tests of the observable-mass relation that indicate the underlying power-law form and scatter are adequate to describe the real cluster sample but that also suggest a redshift variation in the intrinsic scatter of theλ-mass relation may offer a better description. In addition, the average rescaled matter profiles offer high signal-to-noise ratio (S/N) constraints on the shape of real cluster matter profiles, which are in good agreement with available hydrodynamical ΛCDM simulations. This high S/N profile contains information about baryon feedback, the collisional nature of dark matter, and potential deviations from general relativity. 
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  6. Radiation therapy is a powerful and effective treatment which targets malignant tumors. Thus, improvements in radiation therapy devices such as compensators can have an immediate impact on the treatment of cancer patients. This paper investigates the design and manufacturing of customized radiation modulation devices. This research proposes a thin-walled device design that can use recyclable fillable media such as water. This approach has several advantages including localized radiation exposure, eco-friendly design, and lower fabrication costs. The Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) technique was used to develop a hollow bottle-like electron bolus with higher precision (μm resolution). The radiation modulation properties of acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) and polycarbonate (PC) materials were investigated. The compensator devices were subjected to high radiation doses and mechanical loads to check for dimensional deformations which can impact subsequent radiation profiles. Our findings showed that both ABS and PC materials had superior radiation tolerance as evaluated by the dimensional deviation analysis. Further, the devices had adequate mechanical properties as confirmed by deformation tests and finite element analysis. This paper provides a framework for the design and manufacture of custom compensators for radiation therapy. 
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  7. Nanoimprinting of polymers lays the foundation for several electronic and biomedical devices. Process parameter optimization have been conducted using thermal nanoimprint (T-NIL) experimentation. However, the underlying deformation mechanism of specific polymers under varying process condition needs further exploration. This research investigates the deformation behavior of poly acrylic acid (PAA) as a thermoplastic resist material for the T-NIL process. Molecular dynamics modeling was conducted on a PAA substrate imprinted with a rigid, spherical indenter. The effect of indenter size, force, and imprinting duration on the indentation depth, penetration depth, recovery depth, and recovery percentage of the polymer was evaluated. The results show that the largest indenter, regardless of force has the most significant impact on deformation behavior. The results of this research lay foundation for explaining the effect of several T-NIL process parameters on virgin PAA thermoplastic resist material. 
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  8. Abstract The properties of Milky Way satellite galaxies have important implications for galaxy formation, reionization, and the fundamental physics of dark matter. However, the population of Milky Way satellites includes the faintest known galaxies, and current observations are incomplete. To understand the impact of observational selection effects on the known satellite population, we perform rigorous, quantitative estimates of the Milky Way satellite galaxy detection efficiency in three wide-field survey datasets: the Dark Energy Survey Year 6, the DECam Local Volume Exploration Data Release 3, and the Pan-STARRS1 Data Release 1. Together, these surveys cover ∼13,600 deg2tog∼ 24.0 and ∼27,700 deg2tog∼ 22.5, spanning ∼91% of the high-Galactic-latitude sky (∣b∣ ≥ 15°). We apply multiple detection algorithms over the combined footprint and recover 49 known satellites above a strict census detection threshold. To characterize the sensitivity of our census, we run our detection algorithms on a large set of simulated galaxies injected into the survey data, which allows us to develop models that predict the detectability of satellites as a function of their properties. We then fit an empirical model to our data and infer the luminosity function, radial distribution, and size–luminosity relation of Milky Way satellite galaxies. Our empirical model predicts a total of 26 5 47 + 79 satellite galaxies with −20 ≤MV≤ 0, half-light radii of 15 ≤r1/2, (pc) ≤ 3000, and galactocentric distances of 10 ≤DGC(kpc) ≤ 300. We also identify a mild anisotropy in the angular distribution of the observed galaxies, at a significance of ∼2σ, which can be attributed to the clustering of satellites associated with the LMC. 
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    Free, publicly-accessible full text available March 13, 2027
  9. We use galaxy cluster abundance measurements from the South Pole Telescope enhanced by multicomponent matched filter confirmation and complemented with mass information obtained using weak-lensing data from Dark Energy Survey Year 3 (DES Y3) and targeted Hubble Space Telescope observations for probing deviations from the cold dark matter paradigm. Concretely, we consider a class of dark sector models featuring interactions between dark matter (DM) and a dark radiation (DR) component within the framework of the effective theory of structure formation (ETHOS). We focus on scenarios that lead to power suppression over a wide range of scales, and thus can be tested with data sensitive to large scales, as realized, for example, for DM–DR interactions following from an unbroken non-Abelian S U ( N ) gauge theory (interaction rate with power-law index n = 0 within the ETHOS parametrization). Cluster abundance measurements are mostly sensitive to the amount of DR interacting with DM, parametrized by the ratio of DR temperature to the cosmic microwave background (CMB) temperature, ξ DR = T DR / T CMB . We find an upper limit ξ DR < 17 % at 95% credibility. When the cluster data are combined with Planck 2018 CMB data along with baryon acoustic oscillation (BAO) measurements we find ξ DR < 10 % , corresponding to a limit on the abundance of interacting DR that is around 3 times tighter than that from CMB + BAO data alone. We also discuss the complementarity of weak lensing informed cluster abundance studies with probes sensitive to smaller scales, explore the impact on our analysis of massive neutrinos, and comment on a slight preference for the presence of a nonzero interacting DR abundance, which enables a physical solution to the S 8 tension. Published by the American Physical Society2025 
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