Quadrupole splitting and ground state in FeS and NiS (Fe)

From a Mössbauer study of an oriented single crystal of Ni_0.996S (2% Fe⁵⁷) at 298 K (above the metal-insulator transition at 230 K) the sign of the quadrupole splitting in Fe⁵⁷ is determined to be positive; this contrasts with a negative sign found for FeS and Fe_0.93S. A tentative model is presented that is consistent with these results and with magnetic anisotropy data.     

Caracterisation d'une variete amorphie de FeF3 : Etude thermique,magnetique et Mossbauer

Amorphous FeF₃ has been prepared by fast vaporisation of the bulk material and condensation : it has been characterized by X-ray diffraction and differential thermal analysis. Strong antiferromagnetic interactions, but low spin-freezing temperature are observed. The magnetic arrangment is speromagnetic. The spin glass behaviour is questionable; the Mössbauer study reveals an electric field gradient distribution which, in average, has no definite sign.     

Growth of carbon nanotubes with alkaline earth carbonate as support

Multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) were grown by chemical vapor deposition by applying C(2)H(2) fluxed over Fe(1)(-x)Co(x) catalyst supported by alkaline earth carbonate. Detailed investigations of the chemical process occurring prior and during the growth allowed us a significant improvement of the nanotube production rate and quality. We observed a strong influence of the catalyst stoichiometry on the carbon deposition rate and the nanotube characteristics. We also found evidence for the active role of the support in the growth process, which is explained by the decomposition of the carbonate at the growth temperature. Using the optimized parameters obtained from our study performed in a fixed bed furnace, we could improve the production rate to about 500 g/day of purified MWCNTs in our large-scale rotary tube furnace.     

From X- to O-shaped spatiotemporal spectra of light filaments in water

We show that the angle-wavelength spectra of light filaments excited by ultrashort pulses experience a transition from X- to O-like structures when their carrier wavelengths are switched from normal to anomalous dispersion. Calculations confirm that the O-shaped conical emission follows the elliptic geometry of the nonlinear Schr?dinger equation with anomalous dispersion.     

Direct measurement of the single-metal-cluster optical absorption

The absorption of a single isolated metal cluster is directly measured using a novel far-field optical technique based on modulation of its position. Single gold nanoparticles with average diameters down to 5 nm, dispersed on a transparent substrate, are optically detected and their absolute absorption cross section determined.     

Synthesis of diindolocarbazoles by Cadogan reaction: route to ladder oligo(p-aniline)s

Symmetric and nonsymmetric diindolocarbazoles were successfully synthesized for the first time by a Cadogan ring closure using N-alkyl-2,7-disubstituted carbazole precursors. Cyclization reaction on N-alkyl-2,7-di(2'-nitrophenyl) carbazole derivatives is not regioselective and produced a separable mixture of symmetric and nonsymmetric diindolocarbazoles. A carbazole derivative with methyl protective groups at the 1- and 8-positions was therefore used to obtain a symmetric ladder oligo(p-aniline) (compound 22). Optical and electrochemical properties of compound 22 indicate that its neutral semiconducting form is stable in air. This novel class of electroactive ladder oligomers should create new opportunities in micro- and nanoelectronics.     

Femtosecond laser fabrication of tubular waveguides in poly(methyl methacrylate)

Femtosecond laser direct writing is employed for the fabrication of buried tubular waveguides in bulk poly(methyl methacrylate). A novel technique using selective chemical etching is presented to resolve the two-dimensional refractive-index profile of the fabrication structures. End-to-end coupling in the waveguides reveals a near-field intensity distribution that results from the superimposition of several propagating modes with different azimuthal symmetries. Mode analysis of the tubular waveguides is performed using the finite-difference method, and the possible propagating mode profiles are compared with the experimental data.     

A difluorosulfide as a Freon-free source of phosphonodifluoromethyl carbanion

The synthesis of difluoromethylphosphonates is becoming difficult due to environmental protective laws restricting the use of HCFCs and CFCs as starting chemicals. To circumvent this limitation, we report the preparation of a thioether as a new source of the lithiodifluoromethylphosphonate. This methodology avoiding the use of HCFCs involves a selective fluorination of sulfide followed by a thiaphilic addition of an organometallic reagent, which offers an alternative route to obtain phosphonodifluoromethyl carbanion. A contrasted reactivity, due to a medium effect, was also noted which allows addition of a wide range of electrophiles including nitroalkenes and DMF to thioethers.     

Cyclizations of 4-pentenyl, 5-hexenyl, 6-heptenyl, and 7-octenyl fluorinated radicals: a density functional theory theoretical study

The cyclization reactions of the 4-pentenyl, 5-hexenyl, 6-heptenyl, and 7-octenyl fluorinated and ether radicals have been studied by a hybrid Hartree-Fock density functional method. The reliability of this approach has been confirmed in agreement with experimental data and post-Hartree-Fock projected M?ller-Plesset second-order method. The analysis of the theoretical results shows that two factors are crucial for the determination of the regiochemistry and the reactivity of these reactions. The first factor is the ability of the starting radical to have a stable conformation in position to form the transition state, and the second one is the enthalpic effect of the reaction through the stability of the resulting cyclized radical. It should be pointed out that these factors are not linked to the polarity of the radicals due to the presence of CF2 groups.