Electrodeposition of Ni–Fe alloy from a choline chloride-containing ionic liquid

Journal of Solid State Electrochemistry - The electrochemical deposition of a nickel–iron alloy from a plating solution based on a deep eutectic solvent (a eutectic mixture of ethylene glycol...     

On a Polynomial Fractional Formulation for Independence Number of a Graph

In this paper we characterize the local maxima of a continuous global optimization formulation for finding the independence number of a graph. Classical Karush-Kuhn-Tucker conditions and simple combinatorial arguments are found sufficient to deduce several interesting properties of the local and global maxima. These properties can be utilized in developing new approaches to the maximum independent set problem.     

2,3,4,5,6‐Penta­nitro­aniline 1,2‐dichloro­ethane disolvate: `push–pull' deformation of aromatic rings by intra­molecular charge transfer

The title compound, C₆H₂N₆O₁₀·2C₂H₄Cl₂, forms layered stacks of penta­nitro­aniline mol­ecules, which possess twofold symmetry. The voids between these stacks are occupied by dichloro­ethane mol­ecules, which reside near a 2/m symmetry element and display pseudo‐inversion symmetry. The C atoms in one of the two solvent mol­ecules are threefold disordered. In the penta­nitro­aniline mol­ecule, considerable distortion of the benzenoid ring, coupled with the short C—N(H₂) bond and out‐of‐plane NO₂ twistings, point to significant intra­molecular `push–pull' charge transfer at the amino‐ and nitro‐substituted (ortho and para) positions, as theoretically quantified by natural bond orbital analysis of the π‐electron density.     

Two-level structured self-adaptive surfaces with reversibly tunable properties

We report a route to fabricate two-level structured self-adaptive surfaces (SAS) of polymer materials. The first level of structure is built by a rough polymer film that consists of needlelike structures of micrometer size. The second level of structure is formed by the nanoscopic self-assembled domains of a demixed polymer brush irreversibly grafted onto the needles. By exposing the surface to solvents that are selective to one of the components of the brush, we reversibly tune the surface properties. The large-scale surface structure amplifies the response and enables us to control wettability, adhesion, and chemical composition of the surface over a wide range.     

Nanosensors based on responsive polymer brushes and gold nanoparticle enhanced transmission surface plasmon resonance spectroscopy

Swelling (and shrinking) of poly(2-vinylpyridine), P2VP, polymer brushes, caused by pH changes, could be readily monitored by transmission surface plasmon resonance, T-SPR, spectroscopy. Gold nanoparticles attached to the P2VP polymer brushes dramatically enhanced the pH-induced shift in the T-SPR absorption spectra. (A 50 nm shift of the absorption maximum of the T-SPR spectrum of the supporting gold nanoislands was observed upon changing the pH from 5.0 to 2.0, corresponding to a swelling of the polymer brushes from 8.1 +/- 0.7 to 24.0 +/- 2.0 nm. Same shift in the opposite direction was observed upon changing the pH from 2.0 to 5.0.)     

Theoretical conformational analysis of some agonists of the H1- and H2-receptors of histamine

The conformational equilibrium of -(aminoethyl)pyridines has been studied by molecular-mechanics using the geometry optimization. It has been determined that the equilibrium is characterized by the nearly statistical distribution of the ap- and sc-conformers about the bond. Substitution of the dimethylamino-group for the amino-group results in a slight shift of the equilibrium toward the ap-rotamers. The global minimum in -(ammoniumethyl)pyridines corresponds to the conformation with the +sc-orientation about the central C-C bond and the -sc-orientation (in the case of the dimethylammonium derivatives) about the bond. In the latter conformation, the bond of the ammonium group is oriented toward the pyridine cycle. For charged compounds, the regular orthogonal conformation of the aromatic-ring plate is distorted (the vicinal C-C bond becomes eclipsed).Translated from Izvestiya Akademii Nauk SSSR, Seriya Khimicheskaya, No. 8, pp. 1833–1840, August, 1991.The authors are grateful to P. P. Shagidullin and A. Kh. Plyamovatyi for their interest in this work and for fruitful discussions.     

Collective and individual plasmon resonances in nanoparticle films obtained by spin-assisted layer-by-layer assembly

Nanoscale uniform films containing gold nanoparticle and polyelectrolyte multilayer structures were fabricated by the using spin-assembly or spin-assisted layer-by-layer (SA-LbL) deposition technique. These SA-LbL films with a general formula [Au/(PAH-PSS)nPAH]m possessed a well-organized microstructure with uniform surface morphology and high surface quality at a large scale (tens of micrometers across). Plasmon resonance peaks from isolated nanoparticles and interparticle interactions were revealed in the UV-visible extinction spectra of the SA-LbL films. All films showed the strong extinction peak in the region of 510-550 nm, which is due to the plasmon resonance of the individual gold nanoparticles redshifted because of a local dielectric environment. For films with sufficient density of gold nanoparticles within the layers, the second strong peak was consistently observed between 620 and 660 nm, which is the collective plasmon resonance from intralayer interparticle coupling. Finally, we suggested that, for certain film designs, interlayer interparticle resonance might be revealed as an independent contribution at 800 nm in UV-visible spectra. The observation of independent and concurrent individual, intralayer, and interlayer plasmon resonances can be critical for sensing applications, which involve monitoring of optomechanical properties of ultrathin optically active compliant membranes.     

Photochemical structuring and fixing of structures in binary polymer brush layers via 2pi+2pi photodimerization

Binary polymer brushes grafted to Si wafers were prepared from hydrophilic and hydrophobic polymer components, which allow switching the surface properties (as revealed by contact angles) by exposure to varying solvents. The hydrophilic component was poly-2-vinylpyridine; the hydrophobic component was a copolymer of styrene and 2-(4-vinylphenyl)indene containing the photodimerizable phenylindene chromophore. The brushes were prepared via thermal and via photochemical grafting-to methods, which led to distinct layer thicknesses. Structural patterns differing in surface properties were produced and fixed via crosslinking the hydrophobic component by 2pi+2pi photodimerization of phenylindene moieties. The patterns were visually observable.     

Molecular structure of ortho-nitrobenzyltriethylammonium bromide

It was established by x-ray crystallographic analysis that the molecular o-nitrobenzyltriethylammonium cation has an orthogonal orientation of the benzene ring and the vicinal C-N⁺ bond (=93.8°). The nitro group deviates from the plane of the aromatic ring by an angle of 26.9°. One of the ethyl groups at the quaternary nitrogen atom is in an ap-conformation (=176.2°); the other two are in sc-conformations, characterized by torsional angles 65.1 and 69.4°.Translated from Izvestiya Akademii Nauk SSSR, Seriya Khimicheskaya, No. 8, pp. 1816–1818, August, 1991.