Dielectric and optical properties of polymer-liquid crystal composite

Dielectric properties of polymer-liquid crystal mixture, having constituent polymer, poly-butyl methacrylate (PBMA) and liquid crystal, cholesteryl nonanoate, are reported as a function of frequency and temperature. The measurement has been done in a temperature range of 300-375 K and frequency range of 100 Hz-10 MHz. The dielectric permittivity and dielectric loss shows significant changes with the addition of polymer molecules in liquid crystal. The significant feature of composite formation is that the pure liquid crystal and polymer do not show dielectric relaxation in the frequency range covered, while the composite shows relaxation peak at a particular frequency. The optical transmittance of pure liquid crystal and composite has also been measured and compared.     

Investigation of annealing effects on the structural, magnetic and transport properties of Co/GaAs(0 0 1) thin films

Present paper deals with the structural, magnetic and transport studies of as-deposited as well as annealed Co/GaAs(0 0 1) thin film at different temperatures. The X-ray diffraction measurements show oriented growth of as-deposited Co film in the hcp (0 0 2) direction. However, the sample annealed at higher temperatures shows formation of ternary Co₂GaAs phase at the interface. Corresponding magnetic and transport measurements show decrement in magnetization and resistivity with annealing temperatures. The observed reductions in magnetization and resistivity values are mainly attributed to the formation of ternary Co₂GaAs phase at the interface.     

Working group report: Quantum chromodynamics

This is the report of the subgroup QCD of Working Group-4 at WHEPP-9. We present the activities that had taken place in the subgroup and report some of the partial results arrived at following the discussion at the working group meetings.     

Simulation model for shapiro time delay and light deflection experiments

The time delay experiment proposed by I.I. Shapiro in 1964 and conducted in the seventies was the most precise experiment of general relativity until that time. Further experimentation has improved the accuracy level of both the time delay and the light deflection experiments. A simulation model is proposed that involves only a simple mass and time transformation factor involving velocity of light. The light deflection and the time delay experiments are numerically simulated using this model that does not use the general relativistic equations. The computed values presented in this paper compare well with recent levels of accuracy of their respective experimental results.     

Microwave promoted methylation of plant polysaccharides

O-Methylation is of outstanding importance in structural polysaccharide chemistry. A novel method for the methylation of polysaccharides using microwave (MW) irradiation is described. Seed gum from Cyamopsis tetragonolobus (Guar) was fully methylated with dimethyl sulphate and sodium hydroxide using 100% microwave power for 4 min in 68% yield. The completely methylated seed gum thus obtained was hydrolyzed by 70% formic acid followed by 0.5N H₂SO₄ under full microwave power for 1.16 and 1.66 min, respectively. The partially methylated monosaccharides were separated and identified.     

A short proof of a theorem on degree sets of graphs

For a finite simple graph G, we denote the set of degrees of its vertices, known as its degree set, by D(G). Kapoor, Polimeni and Wall [Degree sets for graphs, Fund. Math. 95 (1977) 189-194] have determined the least number of vertices among graphs with a given degree set. We give a very short proof of this result.     

57Fe Mössbauer spectroscopic study of (25−x)MnO–xZnO–15Fe2O3–60B2O3 glasses

The ⁵⁷Fe Mössbauer technique has been used to investigate the effect of zinc oxide substitution in (25???x)MnO–xZnO–15Fe₂O₃–60B₂O₃ glass system (x?=?0, 5, 10, 15 and 20 mol% of ZnO ). Mössbauer absorption spectra for all the samples recorded at room temperature suggest the existence of the two paramagnetic quadrupole doublets. The observed variations in hyperfine parameters have been explained on the basis of cations distribution and exchange interaction at the lattice sites and it is concluded that B–B interaction increases while the metal–metal interaction decreases due to replacement of manganese oxide by zinc oxide. These results suggest that the present glass system exhibits a paramagnetic behaviour that changes towards the weak paramagnetic when manganese oxide was replaced with zinc oxide.     

Stabilization of valence fluctuations in the cerium solid by the time-dependent collision approach

The collision-generated hybridization which has been found responsible for the on-site mixing of the atomic-likef-state and the band-liked states in mixed valence solids has been studied for the cerium solid. A practical expression which depends on the lattice constant and temperature has been obtained for the collision-generated hybridization. Numerical calculations show that the valence varies continuously with lattice constant and that temperature makes the transition smoother. The collision-generated hybridization is found to be of significant strength in the intermediate valence regime; but over a wide range of the valence near 3.5 it varies rather slowly without preferring a particular valence. Factors which can assist the collision-generated hybridization in stabilizing the mixed valence phase at a particular lattice constant are discussed.