Information content in organic molecules: Brownian processing at low levels

The informatic properties of organic molecules have been the subject of our research during the past several years. In the present study, we investigate the lower levels wherein information is expressed via Brownian processing. Organic molecules are like other electronic devices in that their informatic details depend on the operating level in question. The low and high levels are distinguished (among other ways) by the amount of work they require for processing. In this work, a Brownian model is developed by which the low-level content of a chemical system can be quantified. The model is demonstrated for diverse organic molecules. In so doing, several scaling properties of low-level information are illustrated. In addition, the correspondence traits regarding the different levels are examined. Molecular information represents a capacity for work control such as during chemical reactions. Thus, the information expressed at low levels is examined in connection with the reaction pathway selectivity of organic compounds.     

pH-sensitive holograms for continuous monitoring in plasma

Conventional electrochemical methods of determining the pH of body fluids have drawbacks. Newer optical methods offer the promise of miniaturisation and continuous in vivo measurements without drift. This report examines the ability of a holographic sensor based on a thin-film, biocompatible hydrogel (approximately 10 μm) of poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) and ionisable 2-(dimethylaminoethyl) methacrylate to accurately measure the pH of blood plasma ex vivo. It is found that the sensors behave in a fully reversible manner. After an initial calibration with buffers, they can measure pH over extended periods (more than 40 h). Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

Casimir forces between arbitrary compact objects

We develop an exact method for computing the Casimir energy between arbitrary compact objects, either dielectrics or perfect conductors. The energy is obtained as an interaction between multipoles, generated by quantum current fluctuations. The objects' shape and composition enter only through their scattering matrices. The result is exact when all multipoles are included, and converges rapidly. A low frequency expansion yields the energy as a series in the ratio of the objects' size to their separation. As an example, we obtain this series for two dielectric spheres and the full interaction at all separations for perfectly conducting spheres.     

On the support of tempered distributions

We show that, given a tempered distribution S whose Fourier transform is a function of polynomial growth, a point x in is outside the support of S if and only if the Fourier integral of S is summable in Bochner-Riesz means to zero uniformly on a neighbourhood of x. Received: 29 December 2005     

Structure of sodium carboxymethyl cellulose aqueous solutions: A SANS and rheology study

We report a small angle neutron scattering (SANS) and rheology study of cellulose derivative polyelectrolyte sodium carboxymethyl cellulose with a degree of substitution of 1.2. Using SANS, we establish that this polymer is molecularly dissolved in water with a locally stiff conformation with a stretching parameter . We determine the cross sectional radius of the chain ( 3.4 Å) and the scaling of the correlation length with concentration (ξ = 296 c^?1∕2Å for c in g/L) is found to remain unchanged from the semidilute to concentrated crossover as identified by rheology. Viscosity measurements are found to be in qualitative agreement with scaling theory predictions for flexible polyelectrolytes exhibiting semidilute unentangled and entangled regimes, followed by what appears to be a crossover to neutral polymer concentration dependence of viscosity at high concentrations. Yet those higher concentrations, in the concentrated regime defined by rheology, still exhibit a peak in the scattering function that indicates a correlation length that continues to scale as . © 2014 The Authors. Journal of Polymer Science Part B: Polymer Physics Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part B: Polym. Phys. 2015 , 53, 492–501     

Oxygen generation in anodized Ta–Cu alloys

Comparison is made of the influences of copper in the development of amorphous anodic films on Ta-Cu alloys, containing up to 57 at.%Cu, in ammonium pentaborate electrolyte at 293 K. The various films are based on tantala, with low concentrations of copper, relative to those of the alloys, since copper species migrate through the films more rapidly than Ta⁵⁺ ions and are lost to the electrolyte on reaching the film surface. Of particular interest, film growth on Ta-1.5at.% Cu alloy at 1, 0.1 and 0.01 mA cm^?2 proceeds with generation of oxygen, which is contained in nanoscale bubbles within the oxide. Bubbles are more numerous as the current density decreases. In the case of Ta-12at.% Cu and Ta-57at.%Cu alloys, the films are flawed extensively by more numerous oxygen bubbles, which are present mainly in the outer parts of the anodic films; oxygen production and film damage due to the bursting of bubbles limit the anodizing voltage to relatively low values. It is suggested that copper species modify the electron levels, and possibly structure, of the tantala-based films, thereby facilitating oxygen generation within the bulk film by oxidation of O^2- ions of the oxide.