Origin of the chemical shift in X‐ray absorption near‐edge spectroscopy at the Mn K‐edge in manganese oxide compounds

The absorption edge in Mn K‐edge X‐ray absorption spectra of manganese oxide compounds shows a shift of several electronvolts in going from MnO through LaMnO₃ to CaMnO₃. On the other hand, in X‐ray photoelectron spectra much smaller shifts are observed. To identify the mechanisms that cause the observed chemical shifts, 1s ionization as well as 1s → “4p” transition energies have been determined by electronic structure calculations on embedded Mn ions and embedded MnO₆ clusters. Systematic variation of the cluster geometry and the cluster embedding showed that the chemical shifts are predominantly determined by two effects: the changes in the Mn 3d occupation and the changes in the Madelung potential. The large chemical shift in the 1s → 4p transition energies between different materials occurs because the two effects do not compensate each other. The chemical shifts obtained for the embedded MnO₆ clusters agree reasonably with the experimental shifts. The small sensitivity to the material observed for the Mn 1s ionization energies is explained by the near cancellation of the effects of the Madelung potential and the 3d occupation of the Mn ion. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Quantum Chem, 2003     

Large area liquid crystal monodomain field-effect transistors

Butyl, hexyl, and decyl derivatives of the liquid-crystalline organic semiconductor 5,5' '-bis(5-alkyl-2-thienylethynyl)-2,2':5',2' '-terthiophene were synthesized and studied with respect to their structural, optical, and electrical properties. By means of an optimized thermal annealing scheme the hexyl and decyl compounds could be processed into self-assembled monodomain films of up to 150 mm in diameter. These were investigated with X-ray diffractometry, which revealed a clearly single-crystalline monoclinic morphology with lamellae parallel to the substrate. Within the lamellae the molecules were found to arrange with a tilt of about 50 degrees with the rubbing direction of the polyimide alignment layer. The resulting, close side-to-side packing was confirmed by measurements of the UV/vis absorption, which showed a dichroic ratio of 19 and indicated H-aggregation. AFM analyses revealed self-affinity in the surface roughness of the monodomain. The compounds showed bipolar charge transport in TOF measurements, with hole mobilities reaching up to 0.02 cm(2)/Vs and maximum electron mobilities around 0.002 cm(2)/Vs. The hexyl derivative was processed into large-area monodomain top-gate field-effect transistors, which were stable for months and showed anisotropic hole mobilities of up to 0.02 cm(2)/Vs. Compared to multidomain bottom-gate transistors the monodomain formation allowed for a mobility increase by 1 order of magnitude.     

Active-site α-helix in papain and the stability of the ion pair RS− ··· ImH+. Ab initio molecular orbital study

Ab initio MO calculations, using both minimal (STO -3G) and extended (Roos–Siegbahn) basis sets are reported for the systems methanethiol–imidazole, methanethiol–imidazole–formaldehyde, and methanethiol–imidazole–formamide, which, together with a point-change representation of a long α-helix, form models for the active site of papain. It is shown that the large electric field exerted by the helix in the active-site region is responsible for the presence of the essential residues Cys 25 and His 159 in the form of an ion pair RS^? ··· ImH⁺, which is crucial for a recently proposed mechanism for the catalytic action of the enzyme. Also, an explanation is given for the anomalies in measured pK values for these residues. Detailed studies on the (sub)systems show that minimal basis sets lack the flexibility necessary for describing the type of proton transfer involved. We conclude that α-helices are essential parts of enzymes and that they play a significant role in the catalytic process.     

Atomic many-body effects for the p-shell photoelectron spectra of transition metals

Ab initio theoretical results for the 2p- and 3p-hole states of an Mn(2+) ion are reported in order to determine the importance of atomic contributions to the photoelectron spectra of bulk MnO. A combined treatment of relativity and electron correlation reveals important physical effects that have been neglected in virtually all previous work. The many-body and relativistic effects included in the atomic model are able, without any ad hoc empirical parameters, to explain most of the features of the MnO photoelectron spectra. In particular, it is not necessary to invoke charge transfer to explain the complex p-level spectra.     

On the canonical character of the Sawada-Kotera equation

Recursion operators for solutions of two linear equations, associated with the SK equation, are given. A method to construct constants on the motion is described. The hamiltonian structure and the relation with the inverse scattering problem is indicated.     

Potential energy profiles for the unimolecular reactions of [C3H7S]+ Ions

Appearance energies were measured for several types of [C₃H₇S]⁺ ions. From these appearance energy values the heats of formation of the ions were calculated. For the isomeric ions that could not be generated in the mass spectrometer, the heats of formation were estimated by means of the isodesmic substitution method. Transition state energies for the decomposition to C₂H₄ and [CH₃S]⁺ along two pathways were determined from the appearance energies of these ions. Using the energy values, potential energy diagrams were constructed for the rearrangements and decompositions of the [C₃H₇S]⁺ ions. A supplementary ¹³C Clabelling experiment is described for the determination of the rearrangement pathway of [CH₃CH₂CH?SH]⁺ ions prior to decomposition.     

Near-Horizon Celestial Phenomena,a Study in Geometric Optics

Acta Applicandae Mathematicae - Near horizon phenomena, like blank strips in the setting sun or Fata Morganas, can be largely understood in terms of geometric optics. Here the existence of a warm...     

Ultrafast Deactivation Mechanism of the Excited Singlet in the Light‐Induced Spin Crossover of [Fe(2,2′‐bipyridine)3]2+

The mechanism of the light‐induced spin crossover of the [Fe(bpy)₃]²⁺ complex (bpy=2,2′‐bipyridine) has been studied by combining accurate electronic‐structure calculations and time‐dependent approaches to calculate intersystem‐crossing rates. We investigate how the initially excited metal‐to‐ligand charge transfer (MLCT) singlet state deactivates to the final metastable high‐spin state. Although ultrafast X‐ray free‐electron spectroscopy has established that the total timescale of this process is on the order of a few tenths of a picosecond, the details of the mechanisms still remain unclear. We determine all the intermediate electronic states along the pathway from low spin to high spin and give estimates for the deactivation times of the different stages. The calculations result in a total deactivation time on the same order of magnitude as the experimentally determined rate and indicate that the complex can reach the final high‐spin state by means of different deactivation channels. The optically populated excited singlet state rapidly decays to a triplet state with an Fe d⁶(${{\rm t}{{5\hfill \atop {\rm 2g}\hfill}}}$ ${{\rm e}{{1\hfill \atop {\rm g}\hfill}}}$ ) configuration either directly or by means of a triplet MLCT state. This triplet ligand‐field state could in principle decay directly to the final quintet state, but a much faster channel is provided by internal conversion to a lower‐lying triplet state and subsequent intersystem crossing to the high‐spin state. The deactivation rate to the low‐spin ground state is much smaller, which is in line with the large quantum yield reported for the process.