The Ruderman-Kittel-Kasuya-Yosida interaction in amorphous La80Au20 alloys with dilute Gd impurities

From magnetization measurements on some amorphous dilute La_80?xGd_xAu₂₀ alloys with x ? 1 we have shown that the magnetic behavior follows the scaling laws of a spin-glass system, characteristic of the 1/r³ dependence of the pairwise interaction. We have also determined the strength of the Ruderman-Kittel-Kasuya-Yosida interaction V(r) = (V₀cos 2k_Fr)/r³, to be V₀ = 0.20 × 10^?37 ergcm³. The corresponding value of the s-f exchange integral is |J_sf| = 0.14 eV, which is compared with values determined from other experiments.     

Numerical results on the indirect exchange interaction in crystalline and amorphous metals

Computer simulation of the indirect exchange interaction is carried out for a single tight-binding s-band in ordered (simple cubic, body-centered cubic, face-centered cubic) and amorphous (relaxed dense-random-packed) structures. All cases show very similar features in the spatial dependence of the interaction, with no attenuation being observed in the amorphous structure. The structural dependence of the phase coherence of the electron wavefunctions is analysed. Effects due to alloying are briefly discussed.     

Spanning Trails Connecting Given Edges

Suppose that is the set of connected graphs such that a graph G if and only if G satisfies both (F1) if X is an edge cut of G with |X|3, then there exists a vertex v of degree |X| such that X consists of all the edges incident with v in G, and (F2) for every v of degree 3, v lies in a k-cycle of G, where 2k3.In this paper, we show that if G and (G)3, then for every pair of edges e,fE(G), G has a trail with initial edge e and final edge f which contains all vertices of G. This result extends several former results.     

A Flexible On-line Scheduling Algorithm for Batch Machine with Infinite Capacity

We study on-line scheduling on a batch machine with infinite capacity. We present a flexible on-line scheduling algorithm that aims at minimizing the makespan and achieves the optimal competitive ratio of . This research is substantially supported by a grant from City University of Hong Kong (Grant No. 7001119). The second author is supported by this grant and by the Natural Science Foundation of China.     

Alternative procedure for the synthesis of Mansonone F and Biflorin precursor

Synthetic studies on Mansonone F and Biflorin are described. Synthesis of ketone 12 has been achieved by utilizing tetrahydronaphthalene 8 which in turn was prepared from the 5-methoxy-alpha-tetralone 3. The conversion of 8 into ketone 12 was accomplished in four steps (O-alkylation with ethyl bromoacetate, dehydrogenation, alkaline hydrolysis and cyclization with phosponate ester).     

Electronic properties of quasicrystals an experimental review

The electronic properties of a large number of icosahedral-crystal systems have been studied experimentally. These systems include alloys of the simple metals and those that contain transition metals. Some of the icosahedral phases (i-phases) are thermally stable while others are metastable; and their degree of structural order varies within each of the stability classes. The importance of sample quality to the exposition of intrinsic properties is emphasized, particularly for systems with high resistivities. As a result, experiments on single-phase samples from the diversity of systems studied have shed light on the physics of quasicrystalline alloys. Comparison made with the approximant and amorphous phases have provided important insights to the understanding of quasicrystallinity, randomness, and atomic-potential effects on electronic properties. Reduction in the electronic density of states (DOS) at the Fermi level relative to the free-electronic value is observed in the stable i-phase systems studied to date. Examples are the GaMgZn, AlCuLi, AlCuFe, and AlCuRu systems. Although the simple-metal i-alloys such as AlCu (Mg, Li) and (Al, Ga)MgZn within their metastable phase fields are found to have nearly free-electron DOS, the anomalies in their transport behaviour and compositional dependence of electronic properties have revealed the important role of the Fermi-surface-Jones-zone boundaries (FS-JZB) interaction in these measurements. Also, central to the FS-JZB interaction criterion of phase stability is the existence of a pseudogap in the DOS which is most evident in the stable i-phases. Unusual transport behaviour has been reported for the structurally ordered i-phases that contain transition metals. These materials exhibit semi-metallic transport behaviour characterized by a high resistivity (～4000–30000 μΩcm), a large resistivity ratio ρ(4·2 K)/ρ(300 K) ranging from 1·5 to 4 as well as a low carrier concentration of 10^?2 to 10^?3 electron per atom. Adding to the anomalous electron transport are the strong temperature dependences of the Hall coefficient and thermopower leading to a change of sign. Further understanding of the ordered i-phases has been advanced through studies of amorphous phases and crystalline counterparts of i-phases known as rational approximants. Based on these studies, the key findings are reported: (i) even for simple-metal systems in the weak scattering regime, differences in the electronic properties between the structural phases begin to emerge as the FS-JZB interaction increases in strength, (ii) semi-metallic conductivity and other anomalous transport properties are also observed in the approximant-crystals that contain transition metals (e.g. AlMnSi, AlFeCu), (iii) on the other hand, disordered i-phases and amorphous phases containing transition metals are found to possess metallic-glass-like properties. Experimental results reported indicate that the electronic properties of an ordered icosahedral quasicrystal are similar to those of a crystal in the presence of a strong FS-JZB interaction. Quite surprisingly, the elastic scattering time of electrons in the sp-d band ordered phases is found to be much longer than that in the nearly-free-electron i-phases. The propensity towards electron localization is ascribed to the realization of a potentially strong FS-JZB interaction in an ordered structure, particularly that with the icosahedral point group symmetry. The data have also provided evidence for the existence of rapidly varying electronic structures within the pseudogap of a semi-metallic i-crystal and its crystal analogue, despite the short electronic mean free path. The electron transport at low temperature can be described by the weak localization and electron-electron interaction effects. Contact with theories on quasiperiodic systems is also made. Finally, results from the stable decagonal crystals are discussed.     

Lexicographic TAF Algebras

Lexicographic TAF algebras constitute a class of triangular AF
algebras which are determined by a countable ordered set , a dimension function, and a third parameter. While some of the important examples of TAF algebras belong to the class, most algebras in this class have not been studied. The semigroupoid of the algebra, the lattice of invariant projections, the Jacobson radical, and for some cases the automorphism group are computed. Necessary and sufficient conditions for analyticity are given. The results often involve the order properties of the set .

     

A quartz crystal microbalance study of β-cyclodextrin self assembly on gold and complexation of immobilized β-cyclodextrin with adamantane derivatives

Quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) was used to study the self-assembly of per-6-thio-β-cyclodextrin (t₇-βCD) on gold surfaces, and the subsequent inclusion interactions of immobilized βCD with adamantane-poly(ethylene glycol) (5,000 MW, AD-PEG), 1-adamantanecarboxylic acid (AD-C) and 1-adamantylamine (AD-A). From a 50 μM solution of t₇-βCD in 60:40 DMSO:H₂O, a t₇-βCD layer was formed on gold with surface density of 71.7 ± 2.7 pmol/cm², corresponding to 80 ± 3% of close-packed monolayer coverage. Gold sensors with immobilized t₇-βCD were then exposed alternately to six different concentrations of AD-PEG, 500 μM AD-C or 500 μM AD-A aqueous solutions for association, and water for dissociation. Association of AD-PEG conformed to a Langmuir isotherm, with a best fit equilibrium constant K = 125,000 ± 18,000 M⁻¹. For AD-C and AD-A, association (k _a ) and dissociation (k _d ) rate constants were extracted from kinetic profiles by fitting to the Langmuir model, and equilibrium constants were calculated. The parameters for AD-C were found to be: k _a = 100 ± 5 M⁻¹ s⁻¹, k _d = 110 (±18) × 10⁻⁴ s⁻¹, and K = 9,400 ± 1,700 M⁻¹. For AD-A, k _a = 58 ± 6 M⁻¹ s⁻¹, k _d = 154 (±7) × 10⁻⁴ s⁻¹, and K = 3,800 ± 400 M⁻¹. The results demonstrate the utility of QCM as a tool for studying small molecule surface adsorption and guest–host interactions on surfaces. More specifically, the kinetic and thermodynamic data of AD-C, AD-A, and AD-PEG inclusion with immobilized t₇-βCD form a basis for further surface association studies of AD-X conjugates to advance surface sensory and coupling applications.     

Luminescent biological probes derived from ruthenium(II) estradiol polypyridine complexes

Four luminescent ruthenium(II) polypyridine estradiol complexes [Ru(NwedgeN)2(bpy-estradiol)](PF6)2 (NwedgeN = 2,2'-bipyridine (bpy), 4,7-diphenyl-1,10-phenanthroline (Ph2-phen); bpy-estradiol = 5-(4-(17alpha-ethynylestradiolyl)phenyl)-2,2'-bipyridine (bpy-ph-est), 4-(N-(6-(4-(17alpha-ethynylestradiolyl)benzoylamino)hexyl)aminomethyl)-4'-methyl-2,2'-bipyridine (mbpy-C6-est)) have been designed as new luminescent biological probes. The lipophilicity and photophysical and electrochemical properties of these complexes have been investigated. Upon photoexcitation, all the complexes exhibited intense and long-lived triplet metal-to-ligand charge-transfer (3MLCT) (dpi(Ru) --> pi*(diimine)) emission in fluid solutions at 298 K and in low-temperature glass. The binding of the complexes to estrogen receptor-alpha (ERalpha) has been studied by emission titrations. The Ph2-phen complexes showed emission enhancement and increased lifetimes upon binding to the protein. Additionally, the cytotoxicity of the complexes toward the HeLa cell line has been examined by the 3-(4,5-dimethyl-2-thiazolyl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay and the IC50 values ranged from 83.1 to 166.6 microM (cisplatin showed an IC50 value of 34.3 microM under the same experimental conditions). Furthermore, the cellular uptake of the complexes has been investigated by flow cytometry and laser-scanning confocal microscopy.