New strong interactions: From QCD to LHC

The concept of strong interactions need not be limited to the sector of physics taken by QCD. While this domain is investigated by RHIC, LHC will be able to probe potential new strong interactions simultaneously: Finding the precise mechanism for electroweak symmetry breaking is one of the prime problems of physics. Intricately linked to this point is the question after the true nature or even the existence of the Higgs boson. Here, we present stronly interacting theories providing an explanation for the hierarchy problem and leading to a light composite Higgs boson, favoured by experimental data. Our variation of the standard model is consistent with precision data. We achieve this accordance by using technifermions in a higher representation of their gauge group. Anomaly conditions require at least one extra lepton family for some of the theories whereby they contain a natural dark matter candidate. We can accurately determine the masses of said leptons from experimental data.     

Investigation of multiwavelength clock recovery based on heterodyne beats of sideband-filtered signal

We investigate a new parallel all-optical clock recovery scheme based on heterodyne beats of an optical sideband-filtered signal. The oscillating clock signal is recovered when the filtered sideband is combined with a stable local oscillator. The filtering is performed with an optical resonator, which by nature provides possibility for multiwavelength operation. The local oscillator could be realized by a multiwavelength laser, whose emission wavelengths are injection seeded with carrier wavelengths of the input data. The output signal of such a configuration benefits from a reduced bit-pattern effect and a stable offset level. The sideband filtering is demonstrated for 23 simultaneous channels at 100 GHz DWDM grid, each hosting a data stream of 10 Gbit/s.     

Influence of boric acid on the determination of iron in reactor coolant water by graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry

Summary The matric effect of boric acid was investigated in the determination of iron in the primary circuit coolant water of nuclear power plants by furnace atomic absorption spectrometry. The effect of boric acid was of particular interest. The method was applied during refuelling and maintenance periods and the results were used to interpret the chemical changes in the water.

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Einfluß von Borsäure auf die Bestimmung von Eisen in Reaktorkühlwasser durch GF-AAS

     

Novel coordination of a hydroxamic acid : Crystal structures of bis(glycinohydroxamoto)nickel(II) and tris(glycinohydroxamoto)cobalt(III)

The structures of two glycinohydroxamoto (GHA) complexes of Ni(II) and Co(III) have been determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction methods. The crystals of Ni(GHA)₂ are monoclinic with a = 5.360(1), b = 7.315(4), c = 10.194(4) Å, β = 96.57(3), Z = 2, and space group P2₁/c. The crystals of Co(GHA)₃•1/2 H₂O are monoclinic with a = 22.467(19), b = 8.041(4), c = 13.700(11) Å, β = 116.01(7), Z = 8, and space group C2/c. The values of the final residuals R for Ni(GHA)₂ and Co(GHA)₃•1/2 H₂O are 0.0275 and 0.032, respectvely. The molecular structures of Ni(GHA)₂ and Co(GHA)₃ consist of a square planar and an octahedral coordination, respectively, with the glycinohydroxamato (NH₂CH₂CONOH⁻) ligands coordinating to the metal ion via the N (amino) and the N (NOH⁻). These two complexes are the first well-established cases of coordination of the NHO⁻ group of a hydroxamic acid to a transition metal via the nitrogen atom.     

Cytochrome c–dimyristoylphosphatidylglycerol interactions studied by asymmetrical flow field-flow fractionation

Lipid membranes are well recognized ligands that bind peripheral and integral proteins in a specific manner and regulate their function. Cytochrome c (cyt c) is one of the partner peripheral protein that binds to the lipid membranes via electrostatic and hydrophobic interactions. In this study, asymmetrical flow field-flow fractionation (AsFlFFF) was used to compare the interactions of cyt c with the acidic phospholipid 1,2-dimyristoyl-sn-glycero-3-phospho-rac-glycerol (DMPG), oleic acid (OA), and sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS). The influence of pH and the cyt c–lipid molar mass ratios were evaluated by monitoring the diffusion coefficients and particle diameter distributions obtained for the free and lipid-bound protein. The hydrodynamic particle diameter of cyt c (pI 10) was 4.1 nm at pH 11.4 and around 4.2 nm at pH 7.0 and 8.0. Standard molar mass marker proteins were used for calibration to obtain the molar masses of free cyt c and its complexes with lipids. AsFlFFF revealed the binding of cyt c to DMPG and to OA to be mainly electrostatic. In the absence of electrostatic interactions, minor complex formation occurred, possibly due to the extended lipid anchorage involving the hydrophobic cavity of cyt c and the hydrocarbon chains of DMPG or SDS. The possibility of the formation of the molten globule state of cyt c, induced by the interaction between cyt c and lipids, is discussed.Electronic Supplementary Material Supplementary material is available for this article at     

Color Bricks: Building Highly Organized and Strongly Absorbing Multicomponent Arrays of Terpyridyl Perylenes on Metal Oxide Surfaces

Terpyridine‐substituted perylenes containing cyclic anhydrides in the peri position were synthesized. The anhydride group served as an anchor for assembly of the terpyridyl‐crowned chromophores as monomolecular layers on metal oxide surfaces. Further coordination with Zn²⁺ ions allowed for layer‐by‐layer formation of supramolecular assemblies of perylene imides on the solid substrates. With properly selected anchor and linker molecules it was possible to build high quality structures of greater than ten successive layers by a simple and straightforward procedure. The prepared films were stable and had a broad spectral coverage and high absorbance. To demonstrate their potential use, the synthesized dyes were employed in solid‐state dye‐sensitized solar cells, and electron injection from the perylene antennas to titanium dioxide was observed.     

Supercapacitors Based on c‐Type Cytochromes Using Conductive Nanostructured Networks of Living Bacteria

Supercapacitors have attracted interest in energy storage because they have the potential to complement or replace batteries. Here, we report that c‐type cytochromes, naturally immersed in a living, electrically conductive microbial biofilm, greatly enhance the device capacitance by over two orders of magnitude. We employ genetic engineering, protein unfolding and Nernstian modeling for in vivo demonstration of charge storage capacity of c‐type cytochromes and perform electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, cyclic voltammetry and charge–discharge cycling to confirm the pseudocapacitive, redox nature of biofilm capacitance. The biofilms also show low self‐discharge and good charge/discharge reversibility. The superior electrochemical performance of the biofilm is related to its high abundance of cytochromes, providing large electron storage capacity, its nanostructured network with metallic‐like conductivity, and its porous architecture with hydrous nature, offering prospects for future low cost and environmentally sustainable energy storage devices.     

Complexity of solution structures in nonlinear pricing

This paper characterizes and enumerates the possible solution structures in nonlinear pricing problem when the number of buyer types is given. It is shown that the single-crossing property, which is a standard assumption in the literature, reduces the complexity of solving the problem dramatically. The number of possible solution structures is important when the pricing problem is solved under limited information.     

Direct Evidence of Significantly Different Chemical Behavior and Excited‐State Dynamics of 1,7‐ and 1,6‐Regioisomers of Pyrrolidinyl‐Substituted Perylene Diimide

Novel bay‐functionalized perylene diimides with additional substitution sites close to the perylene core have been prepared by the reaction between 1,7(6)‐dibromoperylene diimide 6 (dibromo‐PDI) and 2‐(benzyloxymethyl)pyrrolidine 5 . Distinct differences in the chemical behaviors of the 1,7‐ and 1,6‐regioisomers have been discerned. While the 1,6‐dibromo‐PDI produced the corresponding 1,6‐bis‐substituted derivative more efficiently, the 1,7‐dibromo‐PDI underwent predominant mono‐debromination, yielding a mono‐substituted PDI along with a small amount of the corresponding 1,7‐bis‐substituted compound. By varying the reaction conditions, a controlled stepwise bis‐substitution of the bromo substituents was also achieved, allowing the direct synthesis of asymmetrical 1,6‐ and 1,7‐PDIs. The compounds were isolated as individual regioisomers. Fullerene (C₆₀) was then covalently linked at the bay region of the newly prepared PDIs. In this way, two separate sets of perylene diimide–fullerene dyads, namely single‐bridged (SB‐1,7‐PDI‐C₆₀ and SB‐1,6‐PDI‐C₆₀) and double‐bridged (DB‐1,7‐PDI‐C₆₀ and DB‐1,6‐PDI‐C₆₀), were synthesized. The fullerene was intentionally attached at the bay region of the PDI to achieve close proximity of the two chromophores and to ensure an efficient photoinduced electron transfer. A detailed study of the photodynamics has revealed that photoinduced electron transfer from the perylene diimide chromophore to the fullerene occurs in all four dyads in polar benzonitrile, and also occurs in the single‐bridged dyads in nonpolar toluene. The process was found to be substantially faster and more efficient in the dyads containing the 1,7‐regioisomer, both for the singly‐ and double‐bridged molecules. In the case of the single‐bridged dyads, SB‐1,7‐PDI‐C₆₀ and SB‐1,6‐PDI‐C₆₀, different relaxation pathways of their charge‐separated states have been discovered. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first observation of photoinduced electron transfer in PDI‐C₆₀ dyads in a nonpolar medium.