Water is a restrictive factor for plant growth and ecosystem stability in arid and semiarid areas. The dynamics of water availability in soils and water use by plants are consequently critical to ecosystem functions, e.g. maintaining a high resistance to the changing climate. Plant water use strategies, including water-use efficiency (WUE) and the main water source that a plant species utilizes, play an important role in the evaluation of stability and sustainability of a plantation. The water use strategies of desert plants (Tamarix chinensis, Alhagi sparsifolia, Elaeagnus angustifolia, Sophora alopecuroides, Bassia dasyphylla and Nitraria sphaerocarpa) in three different habitats (saline land, sandy land and Gobi) in Dunhuang (located in the typical arid area of northwestern China) were studied. The stable isotope of oxygen was used to determine the main water source and leaf carbon isotope discrimination was used to estimate the long-term WUE of plant species in the summer of 2010. The results suggest that: 1) the studied desert plants took up soil water below the depth of 80 cm; 2) T. chinensis in the three habitats used deeper soil water and T. chinensis in the Gobi site had higher WUE than those in the saline land and the sandy land. The results indicated that desert plants in Dunhuang depended on stable water source and maintained high WUE to survive in water limited environments.

To understand habitat associated differences in desert plant water‐use patterns, water stable oxygen isotope composition was used to determine water source and leaf carbon isotope composition (δ13C) was used to estimate long‐term water‐use efficiency in three typical habitats (saline land, sandy land and Gobi) in Dunhuang. The primary findings are: (1) in the three habitats, plant species used mainly deep soil water (>120 cm), except for Kalidium foliatum in the saline land, which relied primarily on 0–40 cm soil water; (2) in the saline land and Gobi habitat, Alhagi sparsifolia had the most negative foliar δ13C; in the sandy land, Elaeagnus angustifolia leaf was enriched in 13C than the other three species in 2011, but no species differences in foliar δ13C was observed among the four species in 2012; (3) common species (Tamarix ramosissima and A. sparsifolia) may alter their water sources to cope with habitat differences associated changes in soil water availability with deeper water sources were used in the Gobi habitat with lower soil water content (SWC) compared to in the saline land and sandy land; (4) we detected significant habitat differences in foliar δ13C in A. sparsifolia which may have resulted from differences in SWC and soil electrical conductivity. However, no habitat differences in foliar δ13C were observed in T. ramosissima, which may attribute to the strong genetic control in T. ramosissima or the ability to access stable deep soil water. Overall, the results suggest that extremely arid climate, root distribution and soil properties worked together to determine plant water uptake in Dunhuang area.

In this paper, we reviewed the progress in the application of stable isotope techniques to the study of soil salinization. As a powerful technique, stable isotopes have been widely used in the studies of soil water evaporation, the dynamics of soil salinization and salt-tolerant plant breeding. The impact of single environmental factors on plant isotope composition has been the focus of previous studies. However, the impact of multiple environmental factors on plant isotope composition remains unclear and needs to be carefully studied. In order to gain insights into soil salinization and amelioration, especially soil salinization in arid and semiarid areas, it is essential to employ stable isotope techniques and combine them with other methods, such as located field observation and remote sensing technology.

The formation of various deep silicon structures using plasma etching has wide applications in sensors, micro-electro-mechanical systems and 3D wafer level integration. However, the fabrication of silicon cavities with high accuracy at depth within a large wafer size is still a challenge due to the large amount of etching required. Herein, silicon cavity etching uniformity approaching 3% in a depth of ~100 µm on a 12-inch wafer is achieved through tuning the focus ring height, baffle shape, double zone helium cooling system and chamber pressure. The simulation of the electromagnetic field and gas flow field separately provides the guidance for the improvement, and the way in which the wafer temperature influences the etch uniformity is demonstrated. These results have significance for both the understanding of the plasma etching mechanism and the practical application of the silicon etching process for advanced device fabrication.