Study on crystalline properties of Er-Si-O compounds in relation to Er-related 1.54 μm photoluminescence and electrical properties

Er-Si-O crystalline compounds, which exhibit superlattice structures and sharp and strong Er-related 1.54 μm photoluminescence (PL) spectra at room temperature have been formed by self-assembling growth mechanism. Oxidation of the starting materials which have Si and Er at an atomic ratio of 2:1 are prepared and then oxidation and succeeding high-temperature annealing in Ar above 1250 °C cause a self-assembled superlattice-structured Er-Si-O crystalline compounds. The control of the ratio of Si and Er, as well as the following oxidation and annealing processes, is found to be sensitive to the crystalline properties, PL spectra and electrical properties. In this study, Er-Si-O crystalline thin films are formed on Si substrates by sol-gel and MOMBE methods, and their crystalline properties such as crystalline orientation and concentration ratio of Er, Si and O are investigated. Crystalline Er-Si-O films of high orientation are successfully grown on Si(1 0 0) and its inclined surface. The PL and excitation spectra, fluorescence decay and the electrical properties are found to be strongly related to the crystalline properties. Excess O causes a broader 1.54 μm PL spectra, slower fluorescence decay, lower carrier-mediated excitation and higher resistivity. A precise control of O is found to be necessary to grow superlattice-structured Er-Si-O compounds, which are semiconducting and are excitable via carrier-mediated excitation mechanism.     

Density functional calculations of dangling bonds for CN and SiN films

Hyperfine interaction constants (HFICs) of dangling bonds for CN and SiN films were calculated by density-functional theory. The averaged ¹⁴N isotropic HFICs for C dangling bonds are almost equal to those for Si dangling bonds. The anisotropic ¹⁴N HFICs calculated for C dangling bonds are larger than those for Si dangling bonds by a factor 2. The calculated results were compared with experimental results obtained by electron spin resonance and electron nuclear double resonance. It was indicated that the carbon dangling bonds are located such that they avoid N atoms in CN films.     

Inclusion behavior of thiacalix[4]arenetetrasulfonate toward water-miscible organic molecules studied by salting-out and X-ray crystallography

[reaction: see text] Inclusion ability of thiacalix[4]arenetetrasulfonate (TCAS) toward water-miscible organic molecules such as alcohols, ketones, cyclic ethers, and so on was studied by salting-out of the inclusion complex. NMR spectra of the recovered precipitates showed size selectivity to include the guest molecules. X-ray crystallographic analyses of TCAS salts including acetone and 1,4-dioxane suggested that guests are retained with the aid of cation coordination and H-bonding.     

Specific interaction between polyethylenimine and azo dyes carrying hydroxyl groups

The binding of acid azo dyes having phenolic hydroxyl groups such as orange I ( I ), orange II ( II ), chrome violet ( III ), 4-hydroxyazobenzene-4′-sulfonate ( IV ), and 2,4-dihydroxyazobenzene-4′-sulfonate ( V ) by polyethylenimine was studied by equilibrium dialysis and spectroscopic methods. The results obtained indicate that dyes ( III ) and ( V ) with two OH groups are bound much more strongly than dyes ( I ), ( II ), and ( IV ) with one OH group. Also polyethylenimine is far superior to any other polymers which have been examined, including bovine serum albumin, polyvinylpyrrolidone, and poly-L -lysine, in its ability to form complexes with these dyes ( III ) and ( V ). The OH groups involved participate preferentially in complex formation with polyethylenimine. The unusual affinity of polyethylenimine for the dyes carrying OH groups is discussed.     

CHANGES IN THE PATTERNS OF BIOSYNTHESIS and COMPOSITION OF AMINO ACIDS IN A MARINE PHYTOPLANKTER EXPOSED TO ULTRAVIOLET-B RADIATION: NITROGEN LIMITATION IMPLICATED

Abstract— The impact of ultraviolet-B radiation (UVBR) on the biosynthesis and the composition of intracellular dissolved free and combined amino acids was examined in nitrate-replete and nitrate-deficient cultures of Tetraselmis sp. Several similarities were observed in the response of Tetraselmis sp. to nitrogen deficiency and exposure to UVBR, in support of a view that UVBR affects amino acid synthesis in phytoplankton via its inhibitory effects on nitrogen assimilation into the cells. At levels that still permitted the uptake of carbon into the cells, both nitrogen deficiency and UVBR exposure resulted in a reduction in the overall rates of carbon incorporated into amino acids, an increase in the absolute concentrations of amino acids within the intracellular dissolved free amino acid (INDFAA) pool and a decrease in the total cellular amino acid (TCAA) pool. An examination of the patterns of carbon assimilation into individual amino acids in cells exposed to UVBR revealed similarities with the patterns in cells subject to nitrogen deficiency. The most conspicuous changes from the controls included an increased incorporation of ¹³C into glutamic' acid (glutamic acid + glutamine) and aspartic acid and a marked reduction into alanine and valine. Changes in the concentrations of amino acids within the INDFAA and TCAA pools were also similar in nitrate-deficient and UVBR-exposed cells and resembled the carbon assimilation patterns. These results strongly suggest that UVBR-induced changes in the biosynthesis and composition of amino acids are probably via its suppression of nitrogen assimilation into the cells.     

Supersonic jet fluorescence spectrometry of perylene and benzo[a]pyrene

A supersonic jet instrument for fluorescence spectrometry is described. It consists of a high-temperature free expansion nozzle for continuous sample introduction and a vacuum chamber equipped with a high-speed pumping system. Rotationally cooled spectra obtained with the supersonic jet are compared with gas-phase spectra measured at high temperature for perylene and benzo[a]pyrene molecules. Each component of the unresolved band structure in the high-temperature spectra was found to be composed of a rotational congestion of several vibrational bands. For a 1:1 mixture of perylene and benzo[a]pyrene, selective detection is possible by using supersonic jet spectrometry. The detection limit for perylene is 100 ng. The advantage of this technique over other low-temperature spectrometric methods based on Shpol'skii and matrix isolation effects are discussed.     

Binding of metal ions by polyethylenimine and its derivatives

Measurements have been made of the binding of divalent metal ions, Cu²⁺, Ni²⁺, Co²⁺, and Zn²⁺ ions, by polyethylenimine (PEI) and its acetyl or alkyl derivatives by the equilibriumdialysis technique. These metal ions, in particular the Cu²⁺ ion, exhibited tremendously remarkable binding affinity toward PEI. The extent of complexation of the polymer with the metal ions was decreased markedly by acetylation or alkylation of the polymer. PEI with no primary amine showed an appreciable decrease in its affinity for the metal ion. These results indicate the participation of the primary amine of the polymer in the formation of the complex. A cooperative binding isotherm was observed in PEI–metal ion complex formation, suggesting swelling or conformational change of the polymer induced by this coordination process. Binding of the Cu²⁺ ion by PEI was found to be essentially independent of temperature over the range 5–35°C.     

Synthesis and Crystal Structure of p-tert-Butylthiacalix[8]arene: A New Member of Thiacalixarenes

Even though it was obtained in poor yield, p-tert-butylthiacalix[8]arene (TC8A) has been synthesized as a new member of thiacalix[n]arenes by the terephthalate-induced cyclization of a mixture of acyclic oligomers, which was obtained by the reaction between p-tert-butylphenol and sulfur with CaO in ethylene glycol/diphenyl ether system. Slow evaporation of the chloroform solution of TC8A afforded guest-free crystals consisting of TC8A itself. The close-packed crystal structure of TC8A resembles that of p-tert-butylcalix[8]arene (C8A) closely, containing a plated loop molecular structure.This revised version was published online in July 2005 with a corrected issue number.     

A Dodecalanthanide Wheel Supported by p‐tert‐Butylsulfonylcalix[4]arene

A dodecaholmium wheel of [Ho₁₂(L)₆(mal)₄(AcO)₄(H₂O)₁₄] ( 1 ; mal=malonate) was synthesized by using p‐tert‐butylsulfonylcalix[4]arene (H₄L) as a cluster‐forming ligand. The wheel consists of three fragments of mononuclear A^3? ([Ho(L)(mal)(H₂O)]^3?), trinuclear B^3? ([Ho(H₂O)₂(mal)(Ho(L)(AcO))₂]^3?), and C³⁺ ([Ho(H₂O)₂]³⁺), and an alternate arrangement of these fragments (A^3?? C³⁺? B^3?? C³⁺? A^3?? C³⁺? B^3?? C³⁺? ) results in a wheel structure. The longest and shortest diameters of the core were estimated to be 17.7562(16) and 13.6810(13) Å, respectively, and the saddle‐shaped molecule possesses a pocketlike cavity inside.