Localizing Binding Sites on Bioconjugated Hydrogen-Bonded Organic Semiconductors at the Nanoscale

Hydrogen-bonded organic semiconductors are extraordinarily stable organic solids forming stable, large crystallites with the ability to preserve favorable electrical properties upon bioconjugation. Lately, tremendous efforts have been made to use these bioconjugated semiconductors as platforms for stable multifunctional bioelectronics devices, yet the detailed characterization of bio-active binding sites (orientation, density, etc.) at the nanoscale has not been achieved yet. The presented work investigates the bioconjugation of epindolidione and quinacridone, two representative semiconductors, with respect to their exposed amine-functionalities. Relying on the biotin-avidin lock-and-key system and applying the atomic force microscopy (AFM) derivative topography and recognition (TREC) imaging, we used activated biotin to flag crystal-faces with exposed amine functional groups. Contrary to previous studies, biotin bonds were found to be stable towards removal by autolysis. The resolution strength and clear recognition capability makes TREC-AFM a valuable tool in the investigation of bio-conjugated, hydrogen-bonded semiconductors.     

Enzymatic synthesis of a chiral chalcogran intermediate

Two lipases, Novozyme 435 (lipase B from Candida Antarctica) and Lipozyme TL IM (Thermomyces lanuginosus) were used successfully for the kinetic resolution of racemic 1-(2-furyl)-3-pentanol, the key intermediate in synthesis of the bark beetle pheromone, chalcogran. The desired S-(+)-enantiomer was prepared in enantiomeric excesses higher than 98 % and with yields of 26.3 % and 32.5 %, respectively. Methyl tert-butyl ether and vinyl acetate were found to be the best reaction media and the acetyl donor to achieve fast and effective resolution.     

Some exact results for the spin-1/2 Falicov-Kimball model in the strong coupling limit

The spin-1/2 Falicov-Kimball model for electronically driven valence and metal-insulator transitions is studied analytically using strong-coupling perturbation theory. It is shown that in the limit of the infinite interaction strength between localized and itinerant electrons the Falicov-Kimball model undergoes two types of discontinuous valence transitions: the insulator-metal transitions from an integer-valence ground state (n _f = 1) into an inhomogeneous intermediate-valence ground state (0 < n _f < 1) and the insulator-metal transitions from n _f = 1 to n _f = 0. In addition, we discuss the role of the electron-phonon interaction on the mechanism of valence transitions and we present possible extensions of the exact one dimensional results to higher dimensions.     

Effect of the molecular weight of the polystyrene matrix on the physicomechanical properties of impact polystyrene

The effect of the molecular weight of the polystyrene on the properties of impact polystyrene obtained by mechanical mixing of polystyrene and rubber has been investigated. As the molecular weight of the polystyrene increases, the physicomechanical properties of the impact polystyrene improve and its rheological properties deteriorate. There is a definite correlation between the physicomechanical properties of the polystyrene and those of the impact polystyrene.Scientific-Research Institute of Synthetic Rubber, Kralupy-on-Vltava, Czechoslovakia. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 3, pp. 545–546, May–June, 1971.     

Laser-powered pyrolysis of organic impurities for their removal from germanium tetrachloride

Selective homogeneous pyrolysis of organic impurities in germanium tetrachloride yielding lower molecular weight and easily separable products can be accomplished by a cw CO₂ laser-photosensitized reaction. The features of this reaction make it advantageous over conventional pyrolysis.     

Electronic phase transitions in the spinless Falicov-Kimball model

We have studied thedV/dI vs.V characteristics of point contacts between the heavy fermion superconductor URu₂Si₂ and the conventional superconductors Zn and NbTi. Contacts between URu₂Si₂ and Zn do not show Josephson effects; instead Andreev reflection type structures occur, which are related to both, the heavy fermion and the conventional superconductor. In contrast, contacts between URu₂Si₂ and NbTi become superconducting at low currents. A closed-loop setup with two NbTi contacts on URu₂Si₂ showed SQUID oscillations in a small magnetic field. Our data give evidence that the contacts should be described as superconductor/normal/superconductor junctions with a thick normal layer on the URu₂Si₂ side of the contact with proximity induced superconductivity in theN-layer in the case of NbTi. With such a model the occurrence or absence of superconductivity can be explained and also the suppression of Andreev-scattering which is frequently observed for contacts between heavy fermion superconductors and normal metals.     

The two-dimensional Falicov-Kimball model at finite temperatures: numerical studies

The finite temperature properties of the spinless Falicov-Kimball model are studied in two dimensions using small-cluster exact-diagonalization calculations. The resultant exact solutions are used to examine the f-state occupation (n _f), the specific heat (C) and the density of doubly occupied sites (d) as functions of temperature (τ), f-level energy (E _f) and the interaction strength U. A number of remarkable results are found. (i) In all cases nf and d are smooth functions of τ and E _f. No discontinuous transitions occur at finite temperatures. (ii) The specific-heat curves exhibit a broad single-peak structure of Shottky form (‖E _f‖ large), as well as a two-peak structure consisting of a sharp peak of Ising type followed by a broad peak of Shottky type (‖E _f‖ small). (iii) The specific-heat coefficient is extremely enhanced at low temperatures for some values of E _f. (iv) Depending on a range of parameters used, the system exhibits intermediate-valence behavior as well as some features of heavy-fermion behavior. The results are independent of the size of clusters for a wide range of parameters and can be used to interpret much of the experimental data of rare-earth compounds. Finally, the f-electron density-density correlation functions are calculated and the U-dependence of the critical temperature is discussed.     

Exact solution of the simplified hubbard model

We present the exact solution of the simplified Hubbard model in which only one kind of electrons can hop and this quantum mechanical hopping of electrons is assumed to be unconstrained. It is shown that the model still behaves nontrivially, although it no longer depends on the lattice structure and the dimensionality of the system. For this case we find: (i) a gap in the ground state energy always exists at the half-filled band point (n=1), (ii) a preferred magnetic state atn=1 and largeU is a total spin singlet, (iii)U-dependence of the ground state energy has qualitatively the same form as one of the conventional Hubbard model with the (t ²/U)-behavior at largeU. A phase diagram of the model is discussed.