Lifetime of the 4D 3/2 and 4D 5/2 metastable states in Sr II

Sr⁺ ions were confined in a r.f. quadrupole trap for times of the order of 30 min. The metastable 4D states were populated via laser excitation of the 5P states. The weak quadrupole transition rate into the 5S _1/2 ground state at 674 and 687 nm was deduced from observation of the exponential decay. At background pressures above 10^?7 mbar the radiative decay is dominated by collisional quenching. Extrapolation of the observed decay rate to zero background pressure yields the radiative lifetimes. At pressures around 10^?6 mbar fine structure mixing collisions between the 4D states have been observed, which lead to corrections of the extrapolated lifetimes. As the final result we obtain 395±38 ms for 4D _3/2 and 345±33 ms for 4D _5/2. These results are somewhat higher than theoretical predictions.     

g-Hartree ab-initio calculation of hyperfine-constants for atoms

Theg-Hartree perturbation expansion of hyperfine-constants for atoms is developed. The dipole-constants of the ground state and the excitedp-states of one electron open shell atoms up to Thallium are calculated to first order. A detailed comparison with theory and experiment is given.     

A cathode for solid polymer electrolyte fuel cells: Designing the optimal structure of the active layer

The complete computer simulation of the cathodic active layer with solid polymer electrolyte (Nafion) is carried out. The active layer structure can be described by 8 parameters. In designing the optimal structure, it is shown that to provide the high overall characteristics of the cathode and save the catalyst, 0.5 of the active layer volume should be set aside for the support grains (agglomerates of carbon particles covered with platinum and containing Nafion incorporations and microvoids). Protons and oxygen molecules must be supplied to the active layer by means of peculiar combined percolation clusters. The latter consist of a combination of support grains with either Nafion grains (to produce “protonic” clusters) or grains-voids (to afford “gas” clusters). The volume fractions of Nafion grains and grain-voids are assumed to be 0.25 and 0.25. The computer simulation of the support grain structure is also carried out. Their composition, i.e., the volume fractions of the carbon component (g _e), Nafion (g _ii), and microvoids (g _gg), is varied. The support grains play the key role in the active layer functioning. It is impossible to organize three full-value percolation clusters (electronic, protonic, and gas); hence, one has to have one or two combined clusters in the active layer. Thus the double load fells on the support grains. Their optimal structure should not only sustain the transport of protons and electrons in the active layer but also create the best conditions for the electrochemical process in each grain. The maximum current I _max (realized upon reaching the optimal active layer thicknesses Δ*) is calculated. The dependences of I _max and Δ* on the main parameters characterizing the support grains (g _e and g _ii) are analyzed. Here, two goals are sought: (1) to obtain the high currents, (2) to provide the low consumption of platinum per power unit. To solve the first problem, one has to work with high values of g _e. The second problem requires the opposite: the values of g _e must be minimal possible.     

Semiempirical molecular orbital studies of phthalocyanines

Theπ andσ lone pair electron system of the phthalocyanine molecule has been studied by a semiempirical SCF-MO method. Electronic transitions of bothπ-π ^* andn-π ^* types have been considered. The excited states have been calculated by means of the method of superposition of configurations where all singly excited states are included. Assignments for the electronic spectrum of phthalocyanine could be made in good agreement with experiment. The position of the lowest electronically allowedn-π ^* transition is predicted to be found in the region of the strong Soret band.     

Probing matrix isolated SiO molecular clusters by X-ray absorption spectroscopy

TheK absorption edge of Si in matrix isolated SiO molecular clusters was studied for various dilutionsR(Ar/SiO). The spectra from the clusters at different dilutions show a dramatic evolution in their relative intensity. Two types of spectral features from Si atoms present in the clusters could be detected in the spectra. The first is due to the Si atoms which are tetrahedrally coordinated to Si and O atoms responsible for the presence of different Si oxidation states. The Si⁺, Si³⁺ and Si⁴⁺ oxidation states in SiO clusters and in bulk were readily identified. The Si²⁺ oxidation state whose abundance in SiO clusters is predicted by structural considerations is not clearly observed. The second type of feature, whose intensity decreases with the dilution R, can be attributed to the presence of Si atoms possessing unsaturated bonds. In order to explain this the clustering of 4–6 SiO molecules is simulated to yield different tetrahedral bonding microstructures in which the well coordinated as well as under coordinated Si atoms are present. The behaviour of the spectral features resulting from these microstructures is discussed.     

CPS 758 Untersuchung des Mischungsgleichgewichts binärer Polymermischungen

The phase diagram of a binary polymer blend can be derived from the glass temperaturesT _g of the demixed phases under the following conditions:

1. The T_g's of the pure components are sufficiently different from one another.
2. TheT _g 's of the one-phase homogeneous mixtures can be determined and vary monotonically with composition.
3. The equilibrium state of the mixture is attained after sufficient long annealing at temperatureT.
4. The equilibrium state at the temperatureT can be frozen by quenching.

These conditions are examined for mixtures of polystyrene (PS) and tetra methyl-bis-phenol A-polycarbonate (TMPC). The phase separation kinetics is investigated with respect to size and composition of the co-existing phases. The co-existance curves (binodal with lower critical point) are determined for mixtures with various molar masses of the PS component. The problems concerning the cloud point curves are shortly discussed. BetweenT _g and the binodal the one-phase mixtures exist in a hindered thermodynamic state, because the crystallization of the TMPC component is a very slow process which requires very long annealing. With increasing amounts of PS in the mixture the crystallization half time of TMPC is lowered.     

Radiative and autoionization rates of the metastable 24 P J 0 states in lithiumlike neon

The delayed X-ray and electron emission from metastable states in fast, foil excited neon ions has been investigated. High resolution X-ray and electron spectroscopy at calibrated relative detection efficiencies was applied to determine fluorescence yields for the radiative decay of the (1s2s2p)⁴P _J ⁰ , J=1/2, 3/2, 5/2 states in NeVIII. Using measured total lifetimes corrected for cascading effects the forbidden radiative and autoionization rates were determined.     

Impact parameter dependence of theL-subshell ionization probabilities and of theL 3-subshell alignment tensor components in 4 MeVp-Sm collisions

The ionization of theL-subshells of Samarium by the impact of 4 MeV protons was examined by measuring the coincidence between x rays and scattered protons. TheL ₃-subshell ionization probability agrees well with the SCA predictions, for theL ₁-subshell and theL ₂-subshell ionization probabilities and also for theL ₃-alignment tensor components the results are not in agreement with SCA. Possible reasons for these deviations could be a neglect of collisional coupling between theL-substates.     

Landé g J factor measurements in the 6snd 1,3 D 2 sequences of Yb I

The Landé g _J factors in the 6snd ^1,3 D ₂ sequences as well as states from the perturbing configurations of neutral Ytterbium have been measured by timeresolved fluorescence spectroscopy. Strong singlet-triplet mixing effects were observed. The g _J factors were measured using the Zeeman quantum-beat technique following step-wise laser excitation. The experiment provided new data for checking the Multi-channel Quantum Defect Theory (MQDT) used in energy-level and lifetime analysis.     

Chlorine K shell photoabsorption spectra of gas phase HCl and Cl2 molecules

High resolution photoabsorption spectra of HCl and Cl₂ have been measured near the chlorineK edge in the 2810–2850 eV photon energy range. Below the ClK edge, the strongest resonance is interpreted as a simple core excitation into the unoccupied σ* valence orbital for both molecules, leading to a markedly repulsive state. Higher resonances due to low lying Rydberg states, are observed in both systems, but with a larger oscillator strength for HCl as compared to Cl₂. In Cl₂, the σ* orbital is deep enough to avoid any mixing with Rydberg orbitals. In HCl, we observe the dipole forbidden Cl 1s → 4s transition which denotes a strong 4s–4p hybridization. Above the ClK edge, the multiplet features seen for HCl are analysed in terms of double-core-valence excited vacancy states. In Cl₂, their counterpart are found very close to the ionization threshold because of the deep σ* orbital and possibly because the excited core and valence electrons originates either from the same atomic site or from different ones.     

Penning ionization electron spectrometry of hydrogen chloride

An electron spectrometric study has been performed on HCl using metastable helium and neon atoms as well as neon resonance photons. High resolution electron spectra were obtained with two different beam apparatuses for a mixed He(2¹ S, 2³ S) beam, a pure He(2³ S) beam, and, for the first time, state-selected pure Ne(3s ³ P ₂) and pure Ne(3s ³ P ₀) beams, and for NeI resonance photons. For the system He(2³ S)+HCl the vibrational populationsP(υ′) of the formed HCl⁺ (X ²∏ _i , υ′) and HCl⁺ (A ²Ω⁺, υ′) ions are found to differ from the Franck-Condon factors for unperturbed potentials, indicating slight bond stretching in HCl upon He(2³ S) approach. For He(2¹ S)+HCl the vibrational peak shapes and vibrational populations are substantially different from the He(2³ S) case, pointing to an additional, charge exchanged interaction (He⁺+HCl^?) in the entrance channel of the former system. For the first time, we have detected the electrons in both the He(2¹ S)+HCl and He(2³ S)+HCl spectra associated with the major mechanism for the formation of Cl⁺ ions: energy transfer to repulsive HCl** Rydberg states, dissociating toH(1s) and autoionizing Cl**(¹ D ₂ nl) atoms. For both Ne(³ P ₂)+HCl and Ne(³ P ₀)+HCl, the populationsP(υ′) of both final molecular states HCl⁺ (X, A) agree closely with the Franck-Condon factors at the average relative collision energyē _coll=55 meV and, for HCl⁺ (A ²Ω⁺), also atē _coll=130 meV.     

The evolution of properties of recycled poly(ethylene terephthalate) as function of chain extenders,the extrusion cycle and heat treatment

Poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) is the most widely used plastic in beverages packaging. It is also the most recycled plastic in the world. It is estimated that 6 million tons of PET are recycled (rPET) each year worldwide. Recycling of this material by melt processing has been the subject of many studies, in order to limit the degradation processes that lead to a significant decrease in the molecular weight (viscosity). Two key points are highlighted: The former is the presence of impurities like adhesive, glue and Poly Vinyl Chloride etc. The latter is the presence of water. These were therefore the main factors of the degradation of rPET. The impurities can be eliminated by a selective recovery and the moisture by a suitable drying combined with the addition of chain extenders namely Caprolactam (CAP) and/or Trimellitic anhydride (TMA). This combination has proved to be very promising since extruded mixtures (rPET/TMA or CAP) have quite acceptable rheological properties especially in terms of intrinsic viscosity, dynamic viscosity and melt flow index (MFI) at low concentration of chain extender. Rheological and FTIR analysis showed that the degradation of rPET becomes more significant from the second extrusion cycle. Finally, DSC analysis showed that T _g were not affected by extrusion cycle number; However, cold crystallization temperature T _cc2 were significantly affected by heat treatment. The DSC analysis showed also that from the 2nd extrusion cycle, a conversion of heating crystallization temperature (T _c) which appeared during the first heating (1st scan) to a melting temperature (T _m1) that appeared during the second heating (3rd scan) occurred due to the change of the decomposition mechanism environment (from oxygen environment to that of nitrogen).     

Electrochemical exfoliation and in situ carboxylic functionalization of graphite in non-fluoro ionic liquid for supercapacitor application

Simultaneous electrochemical generation and functionalization of nano-sized graphite from graphite had been carried out in a non-fluoroanion-based ionic liquid, namely, triethylmethylammonium methylsulfate (TEMAMS) containing water and acetonitrile (AN) in different weight ratios. The oxygen-based functional groups attached with the exfoliated material had been identified using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and morphological changes were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). A symmetrical supercapacitor was fabricated using the exfoliated nano-sized graphite, and the influence of surface functionalities on its performance was investigated using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), cyclic voltammetry (CV), and galvanostatic charge–discharge cycles (CC). The highest specific capacitance (C _sp) value of 140 F g^?1 at 0.25 A g^?1 was obtained in 1.0 M H₂SO₄, followed by aqueous TEMAMS (125 F g^?1), TEMAMS/acetonitrile (115 F g^?1), and TEMAMS (106 F g^?1) at 0.10 A g^?1.     

Modification in physical properties of organo clay filled polyurethane nanocomposites

Polyurethane (PU) have been prepared by using polyether polyol (jagropol oil) and 1,6-hexamethylene diisocyanate (HMDI) as a cross-linker. The organically modified montmorillonite clay (o-MMT) is well dispersed into urethane matrix by in-situ polymerization method. A series of PU/o-MMT nanocomposites have been prepared by varying amounts viz., 1, 3, 5 and 6 wt % of nanoclay. The mechanical properties such as tensile strength, percentage elongation at break and tensile modulus of the composites were experimentally determined. The swelling behavior of the composites has been studied in different organic solvents. It was noticed that the swelling data of the composites significantly depends on the solubility parameters of the solvents. Microcrystalline parameters such as, lattice strain (g in %), average number of unit cells (〈N〉) in direction perpendicular to Bragg plane, surface weighted crystal size (D _s) and interplanar distance (d _hkl ), were calculated from X-ray patterns. These parameters were computed using Exponential asymmetric column length distribution functions. Morphological features of cryofractured PU/o-MMT composites were also analyzed using scanning electron microscopy (SEM).     

Influence of the bridging coordination of DMSO on the exchange interaction character in the binuclear copper(II) complex with the nonsymmetrical exchange fragment

The binuclear copper(II) complex [Cu₂L(CH₃COO)] (I), where L^3? is the azomethine trianion based on 3-methyl-4-formyl-1-phenylpyrazol-5-one and 1,3-diaminopropan-2-ol, and its DMSO adduct (II) in which the DMSO molecule acts as an additional bridging ligand are synthesized. The structure of complex II is determined by X-ray diffraction analysis, and the structure parameters of the coordination unit of complex I are determined by EXAFS spectroscopy. The μ²-coordination of the DMSO molecule in compound II results in a change in the sign of the exchange interaction parameter. In complex I, the antiferromagnetic exchange interaction (2J = ?169 cm^?1) occurs between the copper(II) ions. The exchange interaction of the ferromagnetic type (2J = 174 cm^?1) is observed in complex II. The quantum-chemical calculations of the magnetic exchange parameters by the density functional theory method show that the role of the DMSO molecule as a switch of the exchange interaction character is exclusively the stabilization of the “broken” conformation of the metallocycles.     

Liquidus and glass transition temperatures of the ammonium nitrate-dimethylsulfoxide-water system

The liquidus temperature was measured in the ammonium nitrate-dimethylsulfoxide-water system over in the concentration range 0–60 mole% ammonium nitrate. The probable formation of the NH₄NO₃·nDMSO solvate with n=1.3–1.5 and the mixed solvate NH₄NO₃·DMSO·H₂O at 30 mole% ammonium nitrate and a DMSO:H₂O ratio of 4∶1 are indicated. The glass transition temperatures T _g were measured over a salt concentration range of 0–50 mol% ammonium nitrate and at various compositions of the mixed solvent (y _DMSO =0.1–0.9 mole fraction). At a constant mixed solvent composition, the dependence of the glass transition temperature on the salt concentration can be approximated by a linear relationship, as can its dependence on the DMSO content in the solution at constant salt concentration. The glass-forming composition regions were found and the limits of this region are discussed.     

Quantum theory of post-collision interaction in inner-shell photoionization

We have performed fully quantum-mechanical and relativistic calculations of the post-collision-interaction effect in x-ray-induced argonK?L ₂ L ₃(¹ D) Auger and xenonL ₂?L ₃ N ₄(J=3) Coster-Kronig-electron emission. The Dirac-Fock computations include a complete integration over intermediate one-hole continuum states in the lowest-order expression of the resonant double-photoionization cross section. The results are in excellent agreement with synchrotron-radiation measurements of the post-collision-interaction shifts. We have also made nonrelativistic Hartree-Fock test calculations of the argonK?L ₂ L ₃(¹ D) and xenonL ₃?M ₄ M ₅(¹ G ₄) Auger-electron line shapes. The quantum-mechanical results are compared with rigorous semiclassical calculations which have been made without using the stationary-phase approximation. The results of this computational analysis are interpreted in terms of an analytical line-shape formula based on asymptotic Coulomb wave functions. As a consequence the most salient features of the post-collision interaction in inner-shell photoionization are explained.     

Transparent poly(thiourethane-urethane)s based on dithiol chain extender

New segmented poly(thiourethane-urethane)s (PTU-Us) (with hard-segment content of 30–60 mass%) were synthesized by a one-step melt polymerization from poly(oxytetramethylene) diol of \( \overline{M}_{n} \)  = 1,000 g mol^?1 or \( \overline{M}_{n} \)  = 2,000 g mol^?1 or poly(hexamethylene carbonate) diol of \( \overline{M}_{n} \)  = 860 g mol^?1 as soft segments, 1,1′-methanediylbis(4-isocyanatocyclohexane) (Desmodur W ^®) and (methylenedi-1,4-phenylene)dimethanethiol as a chain extender. The PTU-Us were examined by FTIR, GPC, XRD, DSC, TG, Shore hardness, and tensile testing. Moreover, refractive index, transparency, adhesive properties, and resistance to bacteria and fungi were determined for selected polymers. The obtained high-molar-mass amorphous polymers showed elastomeric or plastic properties. Their T _gs were in the range from ?70 to 58 °C. The PTU-Us with the polycarbonate soft segments demonstrated a better segmental miscibility (higher T _gs), transparency as well as generally higher tensile strength and hardness than those with the polyether soft segments. All the synthesized PTU-Us showed a relatively good thermal stability. The temperature of 1 % mass loss of all PTU-Us was in the range of 236–255 °C. The introduction of thiourethane linkages to polyurethane chain caused increase of the adhesive strength on copper–polymer junction and refractive index values. From the microbial studies, it was found that the obtained polymers had delayed the growth of Gram-positive bacteria.     

Effect of hexamethylenetetramines (HMT) surfactant concentration on the performance of TiO2 nanostructure photoelectrochemical cells

Hexamethylenetetramine (HMT) surfactant was used to modify the morphology of TiO₂ thin film nanostructure prepared by a simple technique, namely, liquid phase deposition (LPD) during its growth process. In order to obtain various surface morphologies of TiO₂ nanostructures, the concentration of HMT was varied from 10 to 100 mM. It was found that with an increase in concentration of HMT, the morphology of TiO₂ nanorod in term of its grain size decreases due to the particles agglomeration grown on the surface. The TiO₂ nanostructures with various grain sizes were utilized as photovoltaic materials in photoelectrochemical cell measurement. The highest performance of the cell in terms of the short-circuit current density, J _sc was 0.069 mA cm^?2. This result was achieved from the TiO₂ nanorod cell with the smallest grain size, 12 ± 2 nm. The J _sc of the cell increased with concentration of HMT. The cell utilizing the TiO₂ nanostructure with the smallest grain size possessed the best interfacial contact at the TiO₂/electrolyte containing iodide/triiodide redox couple. Thus, the redox reaction was optimised at this interface.