Ya-Tao Ren

Simultaneous retrieval of the complex refractive index and particle size distribution.

A secondary optimization technique is proposed that allows the complex refractive index and particle size distribution (PSD) to be retrieved simultaneously by using the diffuse transmittance (T), diffuse reflectance (R), and collimated transmittance (T(c)) of a 1-D spherical particle systems as measured values. In the proposed method, two 1-D experimental samples of different thicknesses were exposed to continuous wave lasers of two different wavelengths. First, T, R, and T(c) were calculated by solving the radiative transfer equation. Then, the complex refractive index and PSDs were retrieved simultaneously by applying the inversion technique, quantum particle swarm optimization. However, the estimated results of the PSDs proved to be inaccurate. Hence, a secondary optimization was performed to improve the accuracy of the PSDs on the basis of the first optimization process. The results showed that the proposed technique can estimate the complex refractive index and particle size distribution accurately.

Inverse Transient Radiative Analysis in Two-Dimensional Turbid Media by Particle Swarm Optimizations

Three intelligent optimization algorithms, namely, the standard Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO), the Stochastic Particle Swarm Optimization (SPSO), and the hybrid Differential Evolution-Particle Swarm Optimization (DE-PSO), were applied to solve the inverse transient radiation problem in two-dimensional (2D) turbid media irradiated by the short pulse laser. The time-resolved radiative intensity signals simulated by finite volume method (FVM) were served as input for the inverse analysis. The sensitivities of the time-resolved radiation signals to the geometric parameters of the circular inclusions were also investigated. To illustrate the performance of these PSO algorithms, the optical properties, the size, and location of the circular inclusion were retrieved, respectively. The results showed that all these radiative parameters could be estimated accurately, even with noisy data. Compared with the PSO algorithm with inertia weights, the SPSO and DE-PSO algorithm were demonstrated to be more effective and robust, which had the potential to be implemented in 2D transient radiative transfer inverse problems.

Simultaneous retrieval of temperature-dependent absorption coefficient and conductivity of participating media

A secondary optimization technique was proposed to estimate the temperature-dependent thermal conductivity and absorption coefficient. In the proposed method, the stochastic particle swarm optimization was applied to solve the inverse problem. The coupled radiation and conduction problem was solved in a 1D absorbing, emitting, but non-scattering slab exposed to a pulse laser. It is found that in the coupled radiation and conduction problem, the temperature response is highly sensitive to conductivity but slightly sensitive to the optical properties. On the contrary, the radiative intensity is highly sensitive to optical properties but slightly sensitive to thermal conductivity. Therefore, the optical and thermal signals should both be considered in the inverse problem to estimate the temperature-dependent properties of the transparent media. On this basis, the temperature-dependent thermal conductivity and absorption coefficient were both estimated accurately by measuring the time-dependent temperature, and radiative response at the boundary of the slab.

Fast method of retrieving the asymmetry factor and scattering albedo from the maximum time-resolved reflectance of participating media.

This research presents a parametric study of the time-resolved hemispherical reflectance of a semi-infinite plane-parallel slab of homogeneous, nonemitting, absorbing, and anisotropic scattering medium exposed to a collimated Gaussian pulse. The one-dimensional transient radiative transfer equation was solved by using the finite volume method. The internal reflection at the medium-air interface caused by the mismatch of the refractive indices was considered. In particular, this work focused on the maximum diffuse hemispherical reflectance. Three different optical regions were identified according to the dimensionless pulsewidth βctp. The correlation between the normalized maximum hemispherical reflectance and βctp was conformed to the Boltzmann function. The coefficients in the correlating functions of the match and mismatch refractive index cases were fitted as polynomial fitting functions of the single scattering albedo ω and Henyey-Greenstein asymmetric factor g. Thus, ω and g can be simultaneously reconstructed by the semi-empirical correlations without solving the forward model. In conclusion, the proposed method can potentially retrieve the asymmetry factor and single scattering albedo of participating media accurately and efficiently.

Application of the sequential quadratic programming algorithm for reconstructing the distribution of optical parameters based on the time-domain radiative transfer equation.

Sequential quadratic programming (SQP) is used as an optimization algorithm to reconstruct the optical parameters based on the time-domain radiative transfer equation (TD-RTE). Numerous time-resolved measurement signals are obtained using the TD-RTE as forward model. For a high computational efficiency, the gradient of objective function is calculated using an adjoint equation technique. SQP algorithm is employed to solve the inverse problem and the regularization term based on the generalized Gaussian Markov random field (GGMRF) model is used to overcome the ill-posed problem. Simulated results show that the proposed reconstruction scheme performs efficiently and accurately.

Estimation of radiative parameters in participating media using shuffled frog leaping algorithm

The transient radiative transfer in one-dimensional homogeneous media with ultra-short Gaussian pulse laser irradiated was investigation by the finite volume method. The concept of optimal detection distance was proposed. The radiation characteristic was studied thoroughly. Afterwards, a memetic meta-heuristic shuffled frog leaping algorithm (SFL) was introduced to inverse transient radiative problems. It is demonstrated that the extinction coefficient and scattering albedo can be retrieved accurately even with noisy data in a homogeneous absorbing and isotropic scattering plane-parallel slab. Finally, a technique was proposed to accelerate the inverse process by reducing the searching space of the radiative parameters.

Experimental Comparison of Photothermal Conversion Efficiency of Gold Nanotriangle and Nanorod in Laser Induced Thermal Therapy

An experimental comparison of the photothermal conversion efficiency (PCE) for gold nanotriangles (GNTs) and nanorods (GNRs) was carried out in the present work. The discrete dipole approximation method was applied to identify the spectral characteristic of GNTs and GNRs with different aspect ratios. On this basis, the PCE of GNTs and GNRs in photothermal therapy were compared theoretically. Afterwards, an in vitro experiment was adopted to investigate the thermal effect of porcine muscle induced by laser irradiation, with and without injected GNTs and GNRs. The influences of laser total power, nanoparticle concentration, and nanoparticle type were investigated. It was found that for the commonly-used wavelengths for photothermal therapy, the PCE of GNTs is higher than that of the GNRs. Furthermore, for GNRs loaded in tissue in vitro, high laser power and high concentration of nanoparticles leads to the degeneration and even carbonization of tissue. However, for the GNTs with the same situation (laser power, nanoparticle volume concentration, and heating time), it could lead to the tissue’s evaporation instead of carbonization.

Thermal Performance Characteristics of Porous Media Receiver Exposed to Concentrated Solar Radiation

AbstractSolar thermal power plants with central receiver systems are promising candidates for the harvest of solar energy. However, the development and application of volumetric receivers are restr...

Apparent directional spectral emissivity determination of semitransparent materials

An inverse estimation method and corresponding measurement system are developed to measure the apparent spectral directional emissivities of semitransparent materials. The normal spectral emissivity and transmissivity serve as input for the inverse analysis. Consequently, the refractive index and absorption coefficient of the semitransparent material could be retrieved by using the pseudo source adding method as the forward method and the stochastic particle swarm optimization algorithm as the inverse method. Finally, the arbitrary apparent spectral directional emissivity of semitransparent material is estimated by using the pseudo source adding method given the retrieval refractive index and absorption coefficient. The present system has the advantage of a simple experimental structure, high accuracy, and excellent capability to measure the emissivity in an arbitrary direction. Furthermore, the apparent spectral directional emissivity of sapphire at 773 K is measured by using this system in a spectral range of 3 μm–12 μm and a viewing range of 0°–90°. The present method paves the way for a new directional spectral emissivity measurement strategy.

Optical properties of truncated Au nanocages with different size and shape

The hollow nanostructures are conducive to applications including drug delivery, energy storage and conversion, and catalysis. In the present work, a versatile type of Au nanoparticles, i.e. nanocage with hollow interior, was studied thoroughly. Simulation of the optical properties of nanocages with different sizes and shapes was presented, which is essential for tuning the localized surface plasmon resonance peak. The edge length, side length of triangle, and wall thickness were used as structural parameters of truncated Au nanocage. The dependence of absorption efficiency, resonant wavelength, and absorption quantum yield on the structural parameters were discussed. Meanwhile, the applications of absorption quantum yield in biomedical imaging and laser induced thermal therapy were investigated. It was found that the phenomenon of multipolar plasmon resonances exists on truncated Au nanocage. Furthermore, the electric field distribution at different resonant wavelengths was also investigated. It is found...