Probing the interaction of flower-like CdSe nanostructure particles targeted to bovine serum albumin using spectroscopic techniques

The interaction between flower-like CdSe nanostructure particles (CdSe NP) and bovine serum albumin (BSA) was investigated from a spectroscopic angle under simulative physiological conditions. Under pH 7.4, CdSe NP could effectively quench the intrinsic fluorescence of BSA via static quenching. The binding constant (K_A) was 6.38, 3.27, and 1.90×10⁴ M⁻¹ at 298, 304, and 310 K, respectively and the number of binding sites was 1.20. According to the Van't Hoff equation, the thermodynamic parameters (ΔH°=−77.48 kJ mol⁻¹, ΔS°=−168.17 J mol⁻¹ K⁻¹) indicated that hydrogen bonds and van der Waals forces played a major role in stabilizing the BSA−CdSe complex. Besides, UV-vis and circular dichroism (CD) results showed that the addition of CdSe NP changed the secondary structure of BSA and led to a decrease in α-helix. These results suggested that BSA underwent substantial conformational changes induced by flower-like CdSe nanostructure particles.     

Analysis of BPSK homodyne receivers based on modified balanced optical phase-locked loop in the presence of non-negligible loop propagation delay

Optical homodyne receivers based on modified balanced optical phase-locked loop is analyzed taking into account loop propagation delay. This modified loop contains all the components of a standard BOPLL in conjunction of an additional phase modulator. This modified loop offers a much improved tracking performance and also shows good improvements in the reduction performance over previously reported methods, like, relaxed line-width requirement and improved lock-in range. This study for the first time shows the imperfect-phase-recovery-induced power penalty as a function of laser line-width with the optimum phase deviations in the presence of non-negligible loop propagation delay. It is found that in order to maintain a 10⁻¹⁰ BER system performance with ξ = 1, R = 1 A/W, P_R = −53 dBm, Δυ = 1 MHz, phase modulator sensitivity K_PM = 10 rad/V and 10° phase deviation between the two transmitted bits, the loop delay must be kept below 3 ns. Further, the required line-width with the non-negligible loop delay time is evaluated and found to be (2.1 × 10⁻³)/τ, where τ (s) is the loop delay. This number corresponds to BER = 10⁻¹⁰, imperfect phase recovery power penalty of 1 dB and phase modulator sensitivity K_PM = 20 rad/V.     

Giant optical activity and circular dichroism in the terahertz region based on bi-layer Y-shaped chiral metamaterial

We present a bi-layer Y-shaped chiral metamaterial (CMM) that can realize a giant optical activity and circular dichroism (CD) effect to the incident linear polarization wave in the terahertz (THz) region. Numerical simulation results exhibit that the pronounced CD effect with a great difference between the transmission coefficients for the circularly polarized waves can be obtained at 5.06 THz, meanwhile the 90°-polarization rotation can be observed at 5.2 THz when a y-polarized wave is incident to this CMM propagating along the −z-axis. The mechanism of the optical activity and giant CD effect is illustrated by simulated surface current distributions. Further, the influences of the structural parameters of the proposed CMM to the optical activity and CD effect have been investigated numerically.     

Spectroscopic study on the interaction of Bacillus subtilis α-amylase with cetyltrimethylammonium bromide

The interaction between α‐amylase from Bacillus subtilis and cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) has been investigated at various temperature conditions using fluorescence and circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopic methods. Fluorescence data revealed that the fluorescence quenching of α‐amylase by CTAB is the result of complex formation between CTAB and α‐amylase. The thermodynamic analysis on the binding interaction data shows that the interactions are strongly exothermic (ΔH°=−17.92 kJ mol⁻¹) accompanied with increase in entropy (ΔS° between 109 to 135 J mol⁻¹ K⁻¹). Thus the binding of CTAB to α-amylase is both enthalpic and entropic driven, which represent the predominate role of both electrostatic and hydrophobic interactions in complex formation process. The values of 2.17×10⁻³ M⁻¹ and 1.30 have been obtained from associative binding constant (K_a) and stoichiometry of binding number (n), from analysis of fluorescence data, respectively. Circular dichroism spectra showed the substantial conformational changes in secondary structure of α‐amylase due to binding of CTAB, which represents the complete destruction of both secondary and tertiary structure of α-amylase by CTAB.     

Synthesis, growth, and characterization of a non-linear optical crystal-glycine lithium chloride

A new non-linear optical material, glycine lithium chloride, was synthesized and single crystals were grown by slow evaporation solution growth technique at constant temperature from its aqueous solution. Transparent and well-crystallized hexagonal prisms were obtained by controlled evaporation at a constant temperature of 45 °C. The grown crystals were characterized by X-ray diffraction methods, Fourier transforms infrared spectroscopy, and optical absorption spectrum. Single crystal X-ray diffraction analysis revealed that the crystal lattice of glycine lithium chloride is hexagonal with unit cell a = b = 7.023 Å, c = 5.478 Å, α = β = 90°, γ = 120°, V = 234 Å³. The dielectric response of the crystal with varying frequencies was studied. The second harmonic generation efficiency of the crystal was studied and is found to be larger than KDP.     

Characterization of the interaction between human lactoferrin and lomefloxacin at physiological condition: Multi-spectroscopic and modeling description

The interaction between lomefloxacin (LMF) and human lactoferrin (Hlf) was studied by using fluorescence, circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopic and molecular modeling measurements. By the fluorescence quenching results, it was found that the binding constant K_A=8.69×10⁵ L mol⁻¹, and number of binding sites n=1.75 at physiological condition. Experimental results observed showed that the binding of LMF to Hlf induced conformational changes of Hlf. The participation of tyrosyl and tryptophanyl residues of protein was also estimated in the drug-Hlf complex by synchronous fluorescence. The quantitative analysis data of far-UV CD spectra from that of the α-helix 37.4% in free Hlf to 30.2% in the LMF-Hlf complex further confirmed that secondary structure of the protein was changed by LMF. Near-UV CD showed perturbations around tryptophan and tyrosine residues which involves perturbations of tertiary structure. The thermodynamic parameters like, ΔH° and ΔS°, have been calculated to be 63.411 kJ mol⁻¹ and 231.104 J mol⁻¹ K⁻¹, respectively. Thermodynamic analysis showed that hydrophobic interactions were the main force in the binding site but the hydrogen bonding and electrostatic interaction could not be excluded which in agreement with the result of molecular docking study. The distance r between donor and acceptor was obtained according to fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) and found to be 1.78 nm. The interaction between LMF and Hlf has been verified as consistent with the static quenching procedure and the quenching mechanism is related to the energy transfer. Furthermore, the study of molecular modeling that LMF could bind to the α-helixes between Pro145-Asn152 and Phe167-Gln172 regions and hydrophobic interaction was the major acting force for the binding site, which was in agreement with the thermodynamic analysis.     

Study on the interaction of La with bovine serum albumin at molecular level

The interaction of La³⁺ to bovine serum albumin (BSA) has been investigated mainly by fluorescence spectra, UV-vis absorption spectra, and circular dichroism (CD) under simulative physiological conditions. Fluorescence data revealed that the quenching mechanism of BSA by La³⁺ was a static quenching process and the binding constant is 1.75×10⁴ L mol⁻¹ and the number of binding sites is 1 at 289 K. The thermodynamic parameters (ΔH=−20.055 kJ mol⁻¹, ΔG=−23.474 kJ mol⁻¹, and ΔS=11.831 J mol⁻¹ K⁻¹) indicate that electrostatic effect between the protein and the La³⁺ is the main binding force. In addition, UV-vis, CD, and synchronous fluorescence results showed that the addition of La³⁺ changed the conformation of BSA.     

Synthesis and magnetic study on Mg-substituted Li-Mn spinel oxides

LiMn_2−xMg_xO₄ (X<0.5) cubic spinel oxide was synthesized by the sol-gel technique using Li-nitrate, Mn-acetate and Mg-acetate salts. The gel precursors were decomposed at 300 °C in air and then annealed at temperatures ranging from 500 to 850 °C in an oxygen flow. For a fixed annealing temperature of 700 °C, the lattice constant decreased with an increase in the substitution degree X and a discontinuity was found around X=0.3. With a further increase in X>0.3, the space group of the crystal structure was converted from Fd3m to P4₃32 by the cation ordering in the octahedral site. The low-temperature magnetization increased with X, and the Weiss constant moved in the positive direction and changed its sign from negative to positive around X=0.3. In the case of X=0.5, all the specimens showed P4₃32 structure and ferromagnetic character. The maximum Curie temperature (T_c=23 K) and the maximum magnetization (M_s=4.68 μ_B per the chemical formula unit) were attained simultaneously for the specimen obtained around 700 °C. The Mn valence state was sensitive not only to the substitution but also to the preparation conditions. Hence, it was possible to explain these variations by considering the magnetic interactions between transition metal ions.     

Intermediate-temperature polymorphic phase transition in KH2PO4: A synchrotron X-ray diffraction study

We have used synchrotron X-ray diffraction to investigate the structural and chemical changes undergone by polycrystalline KH₂PO₄ (KDP) upon heating within the 30-250 °C temperature interval. Our data show evidence of a polymorphic transition at T∼190 °C from the room-temperature tetragonal KDP phase to a new intermediate-temperature monoclinic KDP modification (spacegroup P2₁/m and lattice parameters a=7.590, b=6.209, c=4.530 Å, and β=107.36°). The monoclinic RDP polymorph remains stable upon further heating to 235 °C, and is isomorphic to its RbH₂PO₄ and CsH₂PO₄ counterparts.     

Broadband Er-Yb co-doped superfluorescent fiber source

In this paper, extensive experimental results on broad-band double cladding Er³⁺-Yb³⁺ co-doped superfluorescent fiber sources (SFSs), characterizing their output power, mean wavelength, and bandwidth (BW) stability with variations of pump power, pump wavelength, and fiber temperature, have been reported. For a 55-cm fiber, SFS power from 3.7755 (maximum BW condition of more than 80 nm) to 9.1837 mW (maximum power condition, BW is about 34 nm) has been achieved. The SFS mean wavelength dependence on pump wavelength is highly pump temperature sensitive, and can be reduced to zero in a chosen pump temperature field. The intrinsic variation of the SFS mean wavelength λ_m with fiber temperature is also measured, and a linear variation from 15 to 45 °C with a slop of −0.053 nm/°C for L_f = 100 cm and −0.04 nm/°C for L_f = 55 cm is found.     

Fabrication of 550 nm gratings in fused silica by laser induced backside wet etching technique

A series of 550 nm spacing gratings were fabricated in fused silica by laser induced backside wet etching (LIBWE) method using the fourth harmonic of a Q-switched Nd:YAG laser (wavelength: λ = 266 nm; pulse duration: FWHM = 10 ns). During these experiments we used a traditional two-beam interference method: the spatially filtered laser beam was split into two parts, which were interfered at a certain incident angle (2θ = 28°) on the backside surface of the fused silica plate contacting with the liquid absorber (saturated solution of naphthalene-methyl-methacrylate c = 1.85 mol/dm³). We studied the dependence of the quality and the modulation depth of the prepared gratings on the applied laser fluence and the number of laser pulses. The surface of the etched gratings was characterized by atomic force microscope (AFM). The maximum modulation depth was found to be 180-200 nm. Our results proved that the LIBWE procedure is suitable for production of submicrometer sized structures in transparent materials.     

Influence of laser power on the orientation and microstructure of CeO2 films deposited on Hastelloy C276 tapes by laser chemical vapor deposition

CeO₂ films were prepared on LaMnO₃/MgO/Gd₂Zr₂O₇ multi-coated Hastelloy C276 tapes by laser chemical vapor deposition at different laser power (P_L) from 46 to 101 W. Epitaxial (1 0 0) CeO₂ films were prepared at P_L = 46-93 W (deposition temperature, T_dep = 705-792 K). Epitaxial CeO₂ films had rectangular-shaped grains at P_L = 46-77 W (T_dep = 705-754 K), while square-shaped grains were obtained at P_L = 85-93 W (T_dep = 769-792 K). CeO₂ films showed a columnar microstructure. Epitaxial (1 0 0) CeO₂ films with rectangular grains exhibited full width at half maximum of ω-scan on (2 0 0) reflection and ?-scan on (2 2 0) reflection of 3.4-3.2° and 6.0-7.2°, respectively. The deposition rate of the epitaxial (1 0 0) CeO₂ films had a maximum of 4.6 μm h⁻¹ at P_L = 77 W (T_dep = 754 K).     

Effect of sintering temperature on the structural, dielectric and ferroelectric properties of tungsten substituted SBT ceramics

Structural, dielectric and ferroelectric properties of tungsten (W) substituted SrBi₂(Ta_1−xW_x)₂O₉ (SBTW) [x=0.0, 0.025, 0.05, 0.075, 0.1 and 0.2] have been studied as a function of sintering temperature (1100-1250 °C). X-ray diffraction patterns confirm the single-phase layered perovskite structure formation up to x=0.05 at all sintering temperatures. The present study reveals an optimum sintering temperature of 1200 °C for the best properties of SBTW samples. Maximum T_c of ∼390 °C is observed for x=0.20 sample sintered at 1200 °C. Peak-dielectric constant (ε_r) increases from ∼270 to ∼700 on increasing x from 0.0 to 0.20 at 1200 °C sintering temperature. DC conductivity of the SBTW samples is nearly two to three orders lower than that of the pristine sample. Remnant polarization (P_r) increases with the W content up to x≤0.075. A maximum 2P_r (∼25 μC/cm²) is obtained with x=0.075 sample sintered at 1200 °C. The observed behavior is explained in terms of improved microstructural features, contribution from the oxygen and cationic vacancies in SBTW. Such tungsten substituted samples sintered at 1200 °C exhibiting enhanced dielectric and ferroelectric properties should be useful for memory applications.     

Pressure-induced structural phase transition in ReO3

We have investigated the pressure-induced structural phase transition in ReO₃ by neutron diffraction on a single crystal. We collected neutron diffraction intensities from the ambient and high pressure phases at P=7 kbar and refined the crystal structures. We have determined the stability of the high pressure phase as a function temperature down to T=2 K and have constructed the (P-T) phase diagram. The critical pressure is P_c=5.2 kbar at T=300 K and decreases almost linearly with decreasing temperature to become P_c=2.5 kbar at T=50 K. The phase transition is driven by the softening of the M₃ phonon mode. The high pressure phase is formed by the rigid rotation of almost undistorted ReO₆ octahedra and the Re-O-Re angle deviates from 180°. We do not see any evidence for the existence of the tetragonal (P4/mbm) intermediate pressure phase reported earlier.     

Effects of rapid thermal annealing on structural, magnetic and optical properties of Ni-doped ZnO thin films

XPS depth profiles were used to investigate the effects of rapid thermal annealing under varying conditions on the structural, magnetic and optical properties of Ni-doped ZnO thin films. Oxidization of metallic Ni from its metallic state to two-valence oxidation state occurred in the film annealed in air at 600 °C, while reduction of Ni²⁺ from its two-valence oxidation state to metallic state occurred in the film annealed in Ar at 600 and 800 °C. In addition, there appeared to be significant diffusion of Ni from the bottom to the top surface of the film during annealing in Ar at 800 °C. Both as-deposited and annealed thin films displayed obvious room temperature ferromagnetism (RTFM) which was from metallic Ni, Ni²⁺ or both with two distinct mechanisms. Furthermore, a significant improvement in saturation magnetization (M_s) in the films was observed after annealing in air (M_s = 0.036 μ_B/Ni) or Ar (M_s = 0.033 μ_B/Ni) at 600 °C compared to that in as-deposited film (M_s = 0.017 μ_B/Ni). An even higher M_s value was observed in the film annealed in Ar at 800 °C (M_s = 0.055 μ_B/Ni) compared to that at 600 °C mainly due to the diffusion of Ni. The ultraviolet emission of the Ni-doped ZnO thin film was restored during annealing in Ar at 800 °C, which was also attributed to the diffusion of Ni.     

CW-pumped polarization-maintaining Brillouin fiber ring laser: II. Active mode-locking by phase modulation

Stimulated Brillouin backscattering in a cw-pumped long optical polarization-maintaining fiber ring cavity excites spontaneous stable mode-locking. But the shortest pulses allowed by the Brillouin gain bandwidth imply an active mode-locking, which we have achieved by using a phase modulator inside the ring. The experiment is carried out in the infrared at 1.319 μm, and in narrow frequency domains, close to N integer multiples of the ring FSR, we observe two type of mode-locking: either a maximum compression of the Brillouin solitons, or a stable splitting into N equally spaced pulses. Case N = 3 is more detailed. Experiment implies a slight polarization modulation by the phase modulation. Simulations carried out through the coherent three-wave model are in very good agreement for both mode-locking mechanisms. Introduction of a small amplitude modulation together with the intra-cavity phase modulation satisfactorily explains the stable splitting domain as well as the compression domain.     

Synthesis and hydrolysis of octacalcium phosphate and its characterization by electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction

Octacalcium phosphate (OCP) powder was produced by precipitating 250 mL Ca(CH₃COO)₂ 0.04 M into 750 L of phosphate solution (5 mmol Na₂HPO₄ and 5 mmol NaH₂PO₄) at a constant temperature of 60 °C and pH 5, which resulted in a dry white powder. X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analysis, and the electron diffraction pattern (SAED) all showed only OCP. Hydroxyapatite (HAP) was directly obtained through hydrolysis of the powder. The total transformation of OCP into HAP was registered over a period of 6 h. During the first 30 min of hydrolysis both phases coexisted. The two phases and the OCP-HAP interface were structurally analyzed through XRD and TEM. OCP parameters (calculated by the Rietveld method) are a=19.70, b=9.50, c=6.85 Å; α=90.03°, β=92.48°, γ=108.32° (triclinic P-1) with average crystal size of 13.5±0.2 nm, while HAP parameters were a=9.45, c=6.87 Å (hexagonal P6₃/m) with average crystal size of 16.9±0.2 nm.     

Simulative demonstration of soliton pulse stability over the nonlinear regime in a birefringent optical fiber

In this paper, the results of numerical analysis are demonstrated for sech pulse (soliton) propagation in a birefringent optical fiber using computer modeling and simulation. Here, the initial pulse is polarized linearly and guided into the fiber at an angle of 45° to its polarization axes. The birefringence-induced time delay of 200 and 440 ps between X and Y polarization components has been reported at a fiber length of 631.72 km (10 soliton periods) by considering linear and nonlinear regimes, respectively. The Kerr nonlinearity, which stabilizes solitons against spreading due to GVD, also stabilizes them against splitting due to birefringence. A similar fact is true for the birefringent walk-off. Above a certain soliton order (N_th), the evolution scenario is qualitatively different and two orthogonally polarized components of the soliton move with a common group velocity despite their different modal indices or polarization mode dispersion (PMD) at a fiber length of 631.72 km (10 soliton periods) and 1264.344 km (20 soliton periods) over a nonlinear regime at θ≠45°. The physical effect responsible for this type of behavior is the cross-phase modulation (XPM) between the two polarization components.     

Low temperature sintering of sub-stoichiometric Ni-Cu-Zn ferrites: Shrinkage, microstructure and permeability

We have studied sub-stoichiometric Ni-Cu-Zn ferrites with iron deficiency (i.e., <50mol% Fe₂O₃) of composition Ni_0.20Cu_0.20Zn_0.60+zFe_2−zO_4−(z/2) with 0≤z≤0.06. The temperature of maximum shrinkage rate is shifted from T=1000 °C for z=0 towards lower temperatures down to T=900 °C for a sub-stoichiometric ferrite with z=0.02. Dense samples are obtained after firing at 900 °C for z>0 only. Sub-stoichiometric compositions (z>0) do not form single-phase spinel ferrites after sintering at 900 °C, but rather represent mixtures of CuO and a stoichiometric ferrite with slightly modified composition. The formation of small amounts of CuO at grain boundaries is demonstrated by XRD and SEM. The permeability is increased from μ=80 for stoichiometric ferrites (z=0) to μ=660 for z=0.02. The formation of CuO during sintering of sub-stoichiometric ferrites supports densification and is a prerequisite for low temperature firing of multilayer inductors. Addition of 1 wt% Bi₂O₃ as liquid phase sintering aid is required to provide sufficient densification of the stoichiometric ferrite (z=0) at 900 °C. Addition of 0.37 wt% Bi₂O₃ to a sub-stoichiometric ferrite (z=0.02) results in dense samples after firing at 900 °C; however, the microstructure formation is dominated by heterogeneous grain growth.     

Syntheses, crystal structures, visible and near-IR luminescent properties of ternary lanthanide (Dy, Tm) complexes containing 4,4,4-trifluoro-1-phenyl-1,3-butanedione and 1,10-phenanthroline

The ligands 4,4,4-trifluoro-1-phenyl-1,3-butanedione (Hbfa) and 1,10-phenanthroline (phen) were used to prepare ternary lanthanide (Ln) complexes [Dy(bfa)₃phen and Tm(bfa)₃phen]. Crystal data: Dy(bfa)₃phen C₄₂H₂₆F₉N₂O₆Dy, triclinic, P1¯, a=9.9450(6) Å, b=14.0944(9) Å, c=14.6043(9) Å, α=82.104(1)°, β=87.006(1)°, γ=76.490(1)°, V=1971.1(2) Å³, Z=2; Tm(bfa)₃phen C₄₂H₂₆F₉N₂O₆Tm, triclinic, P1¯, a=9.898(5) Å, b=13.918(5) Å, c=14.753(5) Å, α=83.517(5)°, β=86.899(5)°, γ=76.818(5)°, V=1965.3(14) Å³, Z=2. The coordination number of the central Ln³⁺ (Ln=Dy, Tm) ion is eight, with six oxygen atoms from three Hbfa ligands and two nitrogen atoms from the phen ligand. The photophysical properties of the two complexes were studied by absorption spectra, diffuse reflectance spectra, and emission spectra. They show the characteristic luminescence of the corresponding Ln³⁺ ion in both visible and near-IR (NIR) region. Additionally, the energy transfer mechanisms between the ligands and central Ln³⁺ ions were discussed.