′I′ is all the hype : A twofold excess of iodoarene in the title reaction leads to ortho‐quinols in good yields, whereas organocatalytic versions of this reaction enable subsequent epoxidation in a regio‐ and diastereoselective fashion. Chiral iodobiarenes led to enantioselectivities up to 50 % ee. m‐CPBA=meta‐chloroperoxybenzoic acid.
Trapped! Mesopolymer‐entrapped Pt nanoparticles serve as an efficient catalyst for the hydrogenation of benzaldehydes in water at ambient temperature. In comparison with the commercial Pt/alumina catalyst, the Pt/FDU‐14 catalyst shows superior performance in the hydrogenation reaction. The catalyst afforded high turnover frequencies and was reusable more than nine times without loss of activity or selectivity.
The combination of imidazolium surfactants with α‐cyclodextrins (CDs, in green) was used as a control element in the thermoregulated aqueous olefin hydroformylation. The self‐assembly of the imidazolium surfactants (red) favors the micellization process at high temperatures, whereas at lower temperatures the complexation of the surfactant monomers into the α‐CDs is favored.
To each his own : An addressable electrochemical device consisting of orthogonally arranged rows and columns of electrodes has been constructed to monitor protein expression in genetically engineered cells at the single‐cell level. The response based on redox cycling reflected the different expression levels of the enzyme from individual HeLa cells transfected with a plasmid vector including secreted alkaline phosphatase.
Size matters: Nanometer‐sized gaps in aggregates of silver nanoparticles are generated by covering the nanoparticle surface with a bilayer of cetyltrimethylammonium bromide. The nanometer‐ to micrometer‐sized wells are lithographically generated on polydimethylsiloxane surfaces. The wells filled with the modified nanoparticles (see picture) and the effect of the aggregate size on SERS enhancement are investigated.
Suprapolymers : The synthesis of symmetrically end‐functionalized polymers in a single step has been developed by means of ring‐opening metathesis polymerization by using a bimetallic ruthenium initiator and functional chain terminators. Self‐assembly of the resulting polymers allows for the formation of supramolecular alternating block copolymers (see figure).
Reversible and non‐bonding interaction between SWNTs and ODCB is observed from the analyses of visible near‐infrared absorption data and Raman spectroscopies (see spectra). The solvent effect on SWNTs effectively controls the electronic structure of SWNTs under homogeneous conditions.
Slip between the sheets! The intercalation properties of lamellar solid acids have a profound impact on nitrogen doping as well as on the resultant visible‐light photocatalysis, and the effects depend strongly on the protonic acidities of the samples (see figure).
