Layered MoS2 grown on c ‐sapphire by pulsed laser deposition

Layered growth of molybdenum disulphide (MoS₂) was successfully achieved by pulsed laser deposition (PLD) method on c ‐plane sapphire substrate. Growth of monolayer to a few monolayer MoS₂, dependent on the pulsed number of excimer laser in PLD is demonstrated, indicating the promising controllability of layer growth. Among the samples with various pulse number deposition, the frequency difference (A_1g–E¹_2g) in Raman analysis of the 70 pulse sample is estimated as 20.11 cm^–1, suggesting a monolayer MoS₂ was obtained. Two‐dimensional (2D) layer growth of MoS₂ is confirmed by the streaky reflection high energy electron diffraction (RHEED) patterns during growth and the cross‐sectional view of transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The in‐plane relationship, (0006) sapphire//(0002)MoS₂and sapphire//MoS₂ is determined. The results imply that PLD is suitable for layered MoS₂ growth. Additionally, the oxide states of Mo 3d core level spectra of PLD grown MoS₂, analysed by X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), can be effectively reduced by adopting a post sulfurization process. (© 2015 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH &Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Copper(II) complexes with N-(2-hydroxyethyl)-2-iminodiacetic acid and imidazoles: crystal structure,spectroscopic studies and superoxide dismutase activity

Abstract  

Two new copper(II) complexes, [Cu(Hhida)(BenzImH)]·H₂O (1) and [Cu(Hhida)(EtImH)]·2H₂O (2) have been synthesized by the interaction of basic copper carbonate with N-(2-hydroxyethyl)-2-aminodiacetic acid (Hhida²⁻) and benzimidazole (BenzImH) or (2-ethylimidazole (EtImH)). The structures of both complexes were studied by single crystal X-ray diffraction. The geometry around the copper(II) atom can be best described as distorted square pyramidal as indicated by the value of the trigonal index τ = 0.32 for (1) and 0.21 for (2). Spectroscopic and electrochemical studies were performed in order to correlate structural features of the complexes with their superoxide scavenger activity. The ability of the complexes to scavenge superoxide anions was also evaluated.     

First evidence of hexameric and heptameric ellagitannins in plants detected by liquid chromatography/electrospray ionisation mass spectrometry

Ellagitannins are bioactive plant polyphenols of which more than 500 individual compounds have been identified from plants. An ellagitannin-rich fraction was isolated by Sephadex LH-20 from Oenothera biennis (common evening primrose) leaves and roots and analysed by high-performance liquid chromatography/diode-array detection coupled to high-resolution mass spectrometry with an electrospray ionisation interface. The high-molecular mass ellagitannins were characterised by their UV spectra, molecular masses and mass spectral fragments. In addition to the previously reported dimers and trimers, an entire series of oligomeric ellagitannins from dimers to heptamers was characterised in both roots and leaves of O. biennis. This is the first report of natural ellagitannins larger than pentamers.     

Using massively parallel simulation and Markovian models to study protein folding: examining the dynamics of the villin headpiece

We report on the use of large-scale distributed computing simulation and novel analysis techniques for examining the dynamics of a small protein. Matters addressed include folding rate, very long time scale kinetics, ensemble properties, and interaction with water. The target system for the study, the villin headpiece, has been of great interest to experimentalists and theorists both. Sampling totaled nearly 500 mus-the most extensive published to date for a system of villin's size in explicit solvent with all atom detail-and was in the form of tens of thousands of independent molecular dynamics trajectories, each several tens of nanoseconds in length. We report on kinetics sensitivity analyses that, using a set of short simulations, probed the role of water in villin's folding and sensitivity to the simulation's electrostatics treatment. By constructing Markovian state models (MSMs) from the collected data, we were able to propagate dynamics to times far beyond those directly simulated and to rapidly compute mean first passage times, long time kinetics (tens of microseconds), and evolution of ensemble property distributions over long times, otherwise currently impossible. We also tested our MSM by using it to predict the structure of villin de novo.     

Simulated unfolded-state ensemble and the experimental NMR structures of villin headpiece yield similar wide-angle solution X-ray scattering profiles

With the advent of powerful synchrotron sources, solution X-ray scattering is being increasingly used to get basic information about the structure of polypeptides. The solution scattering technique essentially provides one-dimensional data, which are then interpreted in terms of a three-dimensional structure through model building. Here we calculate wide-angle solution scattering patterns for an ensemble of simulated unfolded structures of villin headpiece, which differ from the native structure by rmsd = 8.8 +/- 1.0 A and have only negligible amounts of native secondary structure. We show that the wide-angle solution scattering pattern of such an ensemble shares significant similarity with the one based on the experimental NMR structures of the molecule. Our results suggest that solution scattering in the wide-angle limit, by itself, provides very little information about the secondary structure content of a polypeptide or its side-chain packing.     

Layer-by-layer deposition of bimetallic nanoshells on functionalized polystyrene beads

Bimetallic nanoshells on functionalized polystyrene beads have been fabricated through a layer-by-layer deposition technique exploiting electrostatic interaction. The synthesis has been achieved through the immobilization and successive reduction of the corresponding precursor ions. It has been shown that the thickness of the shell can be controlled by a number of cyclic depositions of respective metals onto the surface of the polystyrene beads.     

On sufficiency and duality in multiobjective programming problem under generalized <Emphasis Type="Italic">α</Emphasis>-type I univexity

In this paper, we are concerned with the multiobjective programming problem with inequality constraints. We introduce new classes of generalized α-univex type I vector valued functions. A number of Kuhn–Tucker type sufficient optimality conditions are obtained for a feasible solution to be an efficient solution. The Mond–Weir type duality results are also presented.     

One-dimensional reaction coordinate and the corresponding potential of mean force from commitment probability distribution

In general, finding a one-dimensional representation of the kinetics of a high-dimensional system is a great simplification for the study of complex systems. Here, we propose a method to obtain a reaction coordinate whose potential of the mean force can reproduce the commitment probability distribution from the multidimensional surface. We prove that such a relevant one-dimensional representation can be readily calculated from the equilibrium distribution of commitment probabilities, which can be obtained with simulations. Also, it is shown that this representation is complementary to a previously proposed one-dimensional representation based on a quadratic approximation of the potential energy surface. The usefulness of the method is examined with dynamics in a two-dimensional system, showing that the one-dimensional surface thus obtained can predict the existence of an intermediate and the occurrence of path switching without a priori knowledge of the morphology of the original surface. The applicability of the method to more complex and realistic reactions such as protein folding is also discussed.     

Protonation and solvent extraction of N-p-tolylbenzohydroxamic acid in hydrochloric acid medium

the protonation of N-p-tolylbenzohydroxamic acid (p-TBHA) in aqueous hydrochloric acid has been investigated by determination of its distribution between cyclohexane and hydrochloric acid. The pK(a) value found was - 2.30 +/- 0.02 at 30 degrees . The solubility of p-TBHA as a function of hydrochloric acid concentration has also been determined. At lower acid concentrations the solubility decreases owing to a salting-out effect, whereas at higher concentrations it increases because of formation of the more hydrophilic protonated species and a salting-in effect. Intramolecular hydrogen-bonding observed in p-TBHA provides evidence for protonation of the nitrogen atom.     

Analytical aspects of some organic acids

Summary Back titrimetric procedures for the estimation of aluminium, zirconium, and thorium have been developed, which involved the adjustment of the concentration of the metallic salts, concentration of EDTA,ph, and temperature, addition of indicator solution (namely, 2-hydroxy3-naphthoic acid and back titration with standard 0.1 M ferric chloride solution. This method is based on the fact that the excess EDTA, which is added to the metal solutions may be back titrated with iron(III), which forms a highly coloured complex with the indicator, when present in slight excess. Quantities of aluminium, zirconium and thorium as small as 10.8, 4.6, 11.6 mg respectively, can be back titrated with in experimental error, when present in a volume of 100 ml.Part IV: See Z. analyt. Chem. 172, 356 (1960).