The induced circular dichroism of helically shaped racemic bilatrienes

Summary The imperfect mirror image relationship of the circular dichroism of (M) and (P) helical biliverdins bound to a homochiral entity (ICD) has been studied using the kinetically stable racemates (M+P)2 and (M+P)3. The phenomena associated with and eventual implications for the interpretation of ICD spectra of naturally occurring kinetically labile biliverdins in terms of chiral recognition are discussed.Dedicated to ProfessorKarl Schlögl on the occasion of his 70^th birthday     

Imaging Magnetic Domain Structures with Soft X-Ray Microscopy

The current achievements in magnetic transmission soft X-ray microscopy will be reviewed. The magnetic contrast is given by X-ray magnetic circular dichroism (X-MCD), i.e., the dependence of the absorption coefficient of circularly polarized X rays on the projection of the magnetization in a ferromagnetic system onto the photon propagation direction. X-MCD contrast can reach, e.g., at L_2,3 edges in transition metals, large values up to 50%. Combined with a soft X-ray microscope where Fresnel zone plates acting as optical elements provide a lateral resolution down at 25 nm, it allows for imaging magnetic microstructures. Specific features of this photon-based technique are the recording of images in varying external magnetic fields, an inherent chemical specificity, a high sensitivity to thin magnetic layers, due to the large contrast, and the possibility to distinguish between in-plane and out-of plane contributions. In this report, recent results obtained with the XM-1 microscope at the ALS (Berkeley/CA) demonstrate the broad applicability of this novel experimental technique to both fundamental and technological relevant issues in nanomagnetism. The future potential will be briefly outlined.     

Quarter wave plates for submillimeter wavelengths

A review is given of different types of quarter wave plates as presently used in the optical and microwave spectral range, with a view to their application in the sub-mm wave-length range. Two types of quarter wave plates have been constructed and results of measurements at 640m are given.     

神光-Ⅱ装置三倍频实验中靶场单元技术的改进

 主要介绍为了满足神光-Ⅱ高功率激光装置三倍频光（351nm，3ω）的物理实验要求，靶场三倍频模拟光源和瞄准监视系统两个主要单元技术的改进，即三倍频模拟光源由基频光（1 053nm，3ω）通过腔外的KTP+BBO晶体倍频获得，再经八路分光系统和主激光耦合；瞄准监视系统由透射式光学系统改进为反射式光学系统，避免原系统存在较大的色差，提高瞄准精度。     

Bimetallic Gold(I) Complexes with Ethynyl‐Helicene and Bis‐Phosphole Ligands: Understanding the Role of Aurophilic Interactions in their Chiroptical Properties

Monometallic gold(I)‐alkynyl‐helicene complexes ( 1 a , b ) and bimetallic gold(I)‐alkynyl‐helicene architectures featuring the presence ( 2 a , b ) or absence ( 3 a , b ) of aurophilic intramolecular interactions were prepared by using different types of phosphole ligands (mono‐phosphole L1 or bis‐phospholes L2 , 3 ). The influence of the Au^I d¹⁰ metal center(s) on the electronic, photophysical, and chiroptical properties of these unprecedented phosphole‐gold(I)‐alkynyl‐helicene complexes was examined. Experimental and theoretical results highlight the importance of ligand‐to‐ligand‐type charge transfers and the strong effect of the presence or absence of Au^I–Au^I interactions in 2 a , b .     

Host–Guest Assembly of a Molecular Reporter with Chiral Cyanohydrins for Assignment of Absolute Stereochemistry

The absolute stereochemistry of cyanohydrins, derived from ketones and aldehydes, is obtained routinely, in a microscale and derivatization‐free manner, upon their complexation with Zn‐MAPOL, a zincated porphyrin host with a binding pocket comprised of a biphenol core. The host–guest complex leads to observable exciton‐coupled circular dichroism (ECCD), the sign of which is easily correlated to the absolute stereochemistry of the bound cyanohydrin. A working model, based on the ECCD signal of cyanohydrins with known configuration, is proposed.     

Synthesis,Characterization, and Electronic Structures of Porphyrins Fused with Polycyclic Aromatic Ring Systems

A series of porphyrins fused with acenaphthylene, phenanthroline, and benzofluoranthene polycyclic aromatic rings were prepared by means of a 3+1 porphyrin synthesis approach and subsequent retro‐Diels–Alder reaction of bicyclo[2.2.2]octadiene‐fused precursors. Analysis of the magnetic circular dichroism spectra and the results of time‐dependent DFT calculations are used to identify the reasons for the trends observed in the wavelengths and relative intensities of the Q bands of the products. Michl's perimeter model is used as a conceptual framework to explain the changes in the relative energies of the frontier π‐molecular orbitals.     

Forever Young: Structural Stability of Telomeric Guanine Quadruplexes in the Presence of Oxidative DNA Lesions**

Human telomeric DNA, in G-quadruplex (G4) conformation, is characterized by a remarkable structural stability that confers it the capacity to resist to oxidative stress producing one or even clustered 8-oxoguanine (8oxoG) lesions. We present a combined experimental/computational investigation, by using circular dichroism in aqueous solutions, cellular immunofluorescence assays and molecular dynamics simulations, that identifies the crucial role of the stability of G4s to oxidative lesions, related also to their biological role as inhibitors of telomerase, an enzyme overexpressed in most cancers associated to oxidative stress.     

Creation of Chiral Thixotropic Gels through a Crown–Ammonium Interaction and their Application to a Memory‐Erasing Recycle System

A unique class of oligothiophene‐based organogelator bearing two crown ethers at both ends was synthesized. This compound could gelatinize several organic solvents, forming one‐dimensional fibrous aggregates. From the observation of circular dichroism, it was confirmed that the helical handedness of the fibrous assembly is controllable by the chirality of 1,2bisammonium guests, thus suggesting that one guest molecule bridges two gelator molecules through the crown–ammonium interaction. Interestingly, we have found that such chirality is created by thermal gelation, whereas it disappears by thixotropic gelation. The new finding implies that the present organogel system is applicable as a reversible switching memory device, featuring memory creation by a heat mode and memory erasing by a mechanical mode.