Onset of landau-level formation in carbon-nanotube-based electronic Fabry-Perot resonators

We report on the onset of Landau-level formation in a carbon nanotube-based Fabry-Perot resonator. Supported by excellent agreement between calculated and measured magnetoconductance patterns, the applied perpendicular magnetic field is shown to modulate the Fabry-Perot conductance oscillations consistently with the formation of a Landau level in the 1D massless Dirac fermions particle excitations.     

Application of biselective refocusing soft pulses to the simplification of heteronuclear correlation spectra

The biselective spin echo technique allows the signals of coupled proton pairs to be extracted from crowded liquid state proton NMR spectra. Its use as a preparation sequence in heteronuclear chemical shift correlation experiments requires the removal of the heteronuclear coupling interaction during the biselective echo time. The discrimination between coupled and uncoupled protons signals is achieved by double quantum filtration, which delivers antiphase magnetization states. The latter are not directly compatible with the design of an HSQC-like pulse sequence. The conversion of antiphase to in-phase magnetization states by a second biselective echo sequence solves this problem. The optimization of spin echo delays is also discussed. Lastly, the article presents modified HSQC and HMBC pulses sequences in which information is obtained solely for the biselectively selected proton pairs. A peracetylated trisaccharide was used as a test molecule.     

Determination of mineral filler orientation in reinforced thermoplastics by x-ray diffraction

Orientation of mica and talc platelets in injection-molded polyamide 6.6 was investigated by X-ray diffraction (diffractometry, pole figures). The platelets are nearly perpendicular to the plane of the molded plaque in the core, and parallel to it in the skin. These orientations are related to the shear and elongation rate distribution in the thickness of the molding.     

Imaging the Footprint of Nanoscale Electrochemical Reactions for Assessing Synergistic Hydrogen Evolution

This work proposes a novel method for measuring the intrinsic activity of single metal-based nanoparticles towards water reduction in neutral media at industrially relevant current densities. Instead of using gas nanobubbles as proxy, the method uses optical microscopy to track the local footprint of the reaction through the precipitation of metal hydroxide, which is associated to the local pH increase during electrocatalysis. The results show the electrocatalytic activities of different types of metal nanoparticles and bifunctionnal core-shell nanostructures made of Ni and Pt, and demonstrate the importance of metal hydroxide nano-shells in enhancing electrocatalysis. This method should be generalizable to any electrocatalytic reaction involving pH changes such as nitrate or CO₂ reduction.     

Investigations of Miscibility in Interpenetrated Systems of Polyurethane and Polystyrene Obtained at Room Temperature

Interpenetrating polymer systems based on crosslinked polyurethane (PU) and polystyrene (PS) were prepared at room temperature by a one-shot (in situ) method, starting from an initial homogeneous mixture of reagents via non interfering mechanisms. Both polymerizations were performed either simultaneously or one after the other. Crosslinks and/or covalent bonds between components were deliberately introduced by the addition of appropriate monomers, in order to tailor the degree of microphase separation. Depending on the formation process, transluscent or transparent films were obtained, despite the difference in refractive index of the components. The maximum of miscibility, taken as from the glass transition criterion, was obtained for sequential tightly graft interpenetrating networks.     

1, 1-dichloroalkylphosphonates: Convenient starting materials for low-coordinated trivalent phosphorus compounds

Diisopropyl 1,1-dichloroalkylphosphonates bearing various groups (alkyl, aryl, allyl, benzyl, phenylthiolate, trimethylsilyl) in the α-position were reduced to the corresponding primary 1,1-dichlorophosphines by the LiAlH₄-AlCl₃ system in diethyl ether. Subsequent dehydrochlorination with tertiary amines in the presence of trapping dipolar compounds (ethyl diazoacetate or n-hexylazide) led to the expected 1,2,4-diazaphospholes or 3H-1,2,3,4-triazaphospholes.     

Synthesis and properties of polyampholytes prepared in microemulsions

A series of polyampholytes of sodium 2-acrylamido-2-methylpropanesulfonate (NaAMPS) and 2-(methacryloyloxy)ethyltrimethylammonium chloride (MADQUAT) has been synthesized by polymerization in microemulsions. The reaction products are stable inverse latexes consisting of high molecular weight copolymers entrapped in water droplets of small size (d % 80 nm) and dispersed in an isoparaffinic oil. The optimization of the formulation was by a selection procedure based on the hydrophile-lipophile balance of the emulsifiers and solubility parameters of the different components. Both ionomers play an important role in the formulation owing to their amphiphilic and electrolyte characters. Reactivity parameter studies yield r_A and r_M values of 0.81 and 1.97 for NaAMPS and MADQUAT, respectively. The properties of polyampholytes in pure water and in salt solutions were investigated by turbidimetry and viscometry experiments. The results are compared with the recently developed theory of Higgs and Joanny (J. Chem. Phys. 94, 1543 (1991)).