Long-time stabilization of porous silicon photoluminescence by surface modification

We present results on the photoluminescence (PL) properties of porous silicon (PS) as a function of time. Stabilization of PL from PS has been achieved by replacing silicon-hydrogen bonds terminating the surface with more stable silicon-carbon bonds. The composition of the PS surface was monitored by transmission Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy at intervals of 1 month in ageing time up to 1 year. The position of the maximum PL peak wavelength oscillates between a blue-shift and a red-shift in the 615-660 nm range with time.     

Phase-controlled atom-photon entanglement in a three-level Λ-type closed-loop atomic system

We study the entanglement of dressed atom and its spontaneous emission in a three-level Λ-type closed-loop atomic system in a multi-photon resonance condition and beyond it.It is shown that the von Neumann entropy in such a system is phase-dependent,and it can be controlled by either the intensity or relative phase of applied fields.It is demonstrated that for the special case of the Rabi frequency of applied fields,the system is disentangled.In addition,we take into account the effect of Doppler broadening on the entanglement and it is found that a suitable choice of laser propagation direction allows us to obtain the steady state degree of entanglement(DEM) even in the presence of the Doppler effect.     

Two manganese(II) coordination polymers driven by (iso)nicotinoyl-hydrazone blocks and pseudohalide ancillary ligands: syntheses,structural features,and magnetic properties

Two coordination polymers, [Mn₂(μ-L¹)₂(μ-N₃)₂]_n (1) and [Mn(μ-HL²)(SCN)₂]_n (2), were assembled in a single-pot from MnCl₂·4H₂O, HL¹ (2-acetylpyridine isonicotinoylhydrazone) or HL² (2-acetylpyridine nicotinoylhydrazone) and ancillary ligand sources (NaN₃ or NH₄NCS). The products were fully characterized, including by single-crystal X-ray diffraction, which revealed a 2-D metal–organic layer in 1 and a 1-D zigzag coordination chain in 2. Both 1 and 2 are constructed from six-coordinate Mn(II) nodes that adopt distorted octahedral (MnN₅O) environments; the adjacent nodes are driven by the μ-L¹ and μ-N₃ linkers in 1 or μ-HL² linkers in 2 to form different metal–organic networks. Their topological classification was performed, disclosing the hcb and 2C1 topology in 1 and 2, respectively. Different weak non-covalent interactions promote dimensionality extension. Variable-temperature magnetic susceptibility measurements were carried out, revealing weak ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic interactions in 1 and 2, respectively.     

Recent advances in surface engineering of superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles for biomedical applications

Superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPIONs) are promising materials for various biomedical applications including targeted drug delivery and imaging, hyperthermia, magneto-transfections, gene therapy, stem cell tracking, molecular/cellular tracking, magnetic separation technologies (e.g. rapid DNA sequencing), and detection of liver and lymph node metastases. The most recent applications for SPIONs for early detection of inflammatory, cancer, diabetes and atherosclerosis have also increased their popularity in academia. In order to increase the efficacy of SPIONs in the desired applications, especial surface coating/characteristics are required. The aim of this article is to review the surface properties of magnetic nanoparticles upon synthesis and the surface engineering by different coatings. The biological aspects, cytotoxicity, and health risks are addressed. Special emphasis is given to organic and inorganic-based coatings due to their determinant role in biocompatibility or toxicity of the final particles.     

Light Higgs bosons in phenomenological NMSSM

We consider scenarios in the next-to-minimal supersymmetric model (NMSSM) where the CP-odd and charged Higgs bosons are very light. As we demonstrate, these can be obtained as simple deformations of existing phenomenological MSSM benchmarks scenarios with parameters defined at the weak scale. This offers a direct and meaningful comparison to the MSSM case. Applying a wide set of up-to-date constraints from both high-energy collider and flavor physics, the Higgs boson masses and couplings are studied in viable parts of parameter space. The LHC phenomenology of the light Higgs scenario for neutral and charged Higgs boson searches is discussed.     

Sequentially Injective Hull of Acts Over Idempotent Semigroups

In this paper using the notion of a sequentially dense monomorphism we consider sequential injectivity (s-injectivity) for acts over a semigroup S. Among other things we describe the s-injective hull of acts over an idempotent semigroup S. We also give some classes of idempotent semigroups for the acts over which the notions of injectivity and s-injectivity coincide, and hence get the injective hull of acts over these classes of semigroups.     

Selective synthesis of copper microsheets and ultralong microwires via a surfactant assisted hydrothermal process

The surfactant assisted hydrothermal process for selective preparation of copper nanosheets and ultralong microwires by reducing Cu²⁺ with 2-(bis-phosphonomethylamino)propionic acid (dpc) under the action of cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) or polyvinyl pyrrolidine (PVP) is presented. X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) and energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDX) indicate that the products are pure Cu of cubic phase. The effects of starting material concentration and reaction time on morphology of nanosheets have been studied by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The presence of CTAB and PVP as capping agents is identified by EDX, transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and FT-IR. The possible growth process for ultralong microwires was studied by stopping the growth at a series of intermediate morphology stages based on SEM observations. Optical properties of Cu nanosheets and ultralong microwires were studied by UV-Vis spectrophotometry.     

Water increases rates of epoxidation by Mn(III)porphyrins/imidazole/IO4(-) in CH2Cl2. Analogy with peroxidase and chlorite dismutase

Manganese(III)-meso-tetraphenylporphyrin [Mn(TPP)] and manganese(III)-meso-tetrakis(pentafluorophenyl)porphyrin [Mn(TPFPP)] catalyse the epoxidation of cyclooctene by IO(4)(-) in the presence of excess imidazoles, in both dry CH(2)Cl(2) and CH(2)Cl(2) saturated with H(2)O. The reaction rates of the electron deficient Mn(TPFPP) are a factor 24 less than those of Mn(TPP); however, the former increases 15-30 times in the presence of water, while those of Mn(TPP) do so by a factor of 2-3. The most striking catalytic enhancement caused by the addition of water was observed with 2-methylimidazole and Mn(TPFPP). As deprotonation of imidazoles may play a significant role in the presence of water, we found that manganese(III)-meso-tetrakis(phenyl-4-sulfonato)porphyrin [Mn(TPPS)] decreases the NH proton pK(a) of axially coordinated imidazole from 14.2 to 9.5. We conclude that the imidazole ligand is partially deprotonated in the presence of water. The latter enables the solvation of imidazolium ions that are formed simultaneously. The imidazolate form of the co-catalyst is a much stronger donor than the imidazole itself, providing electron density to Mn(III) and thus promoting oxygen transfer. The failure of N-methylimidazole to increase the reaction rates upon addition of water supports this hypothesis. A functionally related deprotonation has been shown to occur in horseradish peroxidase (J. S. de Ropp, V. Thanabal, G. N. La Mar, J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1985, 107, 8270-8272) and in chlorite dismutase (B. R. Goblirsch, B. R. Streit, J. L. Dubois, C. M. Wilmot, J. Biol. Inorg. Chem. 2010, 15, 879-888). Mn(III)porphyrins in combination with imidazoles and water constitute a functional biomimetic model of peroxidases.     

Raman active jagged-shaped gold-coated magnetic particles as a novel multimodal nanoprobe

The creation of novel engineered multimodal nanoparticles (NPs) is a key focus in bionanotechnology and can lead to deep understanding of biological processes at the molecular level. Here, we present a multi-component system made of gold-coupled core-shell SPIONs, as a new nanoprobe with signal enhancement in surface Raman spectroscopy, due to its jagged-shaped gold shell coating.