Thiophene‐cored 2,2‐bis(methylol)propionic acid dendrimers for optical‐power‐limiting applications

The synthesis and characterization of dendron‐coated 2,5‐bis(phenylethynyl)thiophene chromophores are described. The dendrimers were grown divergently on the arylthiophene core with the versatile anhydride of 2,2‐bis(methylol)propionic acid. The arylthiophene core was synthesized with Sonogashira coupling reactions. Structurally well‐defined dendrimers up to the fourth generation were grown, as confirmed by size exclusion chromatography, NMR, and matrix‐assisted laser desorption/ionization time‐of‐flight analysis. The different dendritic substitution did not influence the absorption spectra of the compounds in or near the visible region. Solutions of arylthiophenes had good transparency at wavelengths greater than 400 nm. The dendritic thiophenes exhibited an optical‐power limit at the laser wavelength of 532 nm. However, the magnitude of the optical‐power limit of these compounds was slightly lower than that of a nondendritic arylthiophene with n‐pentyl substituents. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 43: 1177–1187, 2005     

Solid-state characterization of spray-dried ice cream mixes

The main physicochemical properties of spray-dried ice cream mixes (i.e. surface composition, wettability, flowability and microstructure) were analyzed. Emulsions contained 19-44% milk fat on a dry basis and included mixes with no added emulsifier and/or sucrose. The time necessary for complete wetting of the powders correlated with the amount of surface free-fat measured by means of solvent extraction. Non-micellar casein (sodium caseinate) showed to be a better co-encapsulant than micellar casein (skim milk) as demonstrated by surface fat coverage measured by electron spectroscopy for chemical analysis (ESCA). Emulsifiers influenced the fat surface composition of the powders by reducing the amount of surface protein due to their lower interfacial tension. Surface fat caused an initial overestimation of the particle size of the powders due to fat-related caking. Powders showed no flow before and after surface fat extraction which was attributed to fat-related caking and very small particle size (<80 microm), respectively.     

Gap effect on moiré patterns

Résumé Nous analysons les caractéristiques principles des lignes de moiré produitues par des réseaux, dont les deux plans ne coïncident pas, illuminés par la lumière diffuse et non cohérente.Nous étudions, les aspects physiques de la formation des lignes de moiré et obtenons des équations qui donnent les valeurs des déformations fictives produites par la non-coïncidence des plans du réseau témoin et du réseau déformé.Les résultats théoriques sont comparés avec les mesures expérimentales. L'écart constaté entre les deux valeurs correspond aux erreurs expérimentales.     

Evidence for the production of slow antiprotonic hydrogen in vacuum

We present evidence showing how antiprotonic hydrogen, the quasistable antiproton (p)-proton bound system, has been synthesized following the interaction of antiprotons with the molecular ion H2+ in a nested Penning trap environment. From a careful analysis of the spatial distributions of antiproton annihilation events, evidence is presented for antiprotonic hydrogen production with sub-eV kinetic energies in states around n=70, and with low angular momenta. The slow antiprotonic hydrogen may be studied using laser spectroscopic techniques.     

Physicochemical aspects of novel surfactantless, self-templated mesoporous SnO2 thin films

A novel method of synthesis consisting of the production of ordered arrangements of tubular pores distributed inside SnO2 annealed thin films, which are prepared from a rotating disk process carried out at 2000-3500 rpm, is herein described. The main novelty is that no surfactant molecules are required in order to create these ordered pore structures; the templating entities are supramolecular assemblies of oligomeric chains formed during the extra-long aging allowed to the sol-gel processing of tin(IV) tetra-tert-amiloxide, Sn(OAm(t))4, chelated with acetylacetone molecules. Low angle X-ray diffraction peaks of SnO2 thin films calcined at 500 degrees C clearly certify the existence of ordered mesostructures when employing the right H2O/Sn(OAm(t))4 molar ratio during the SnO2 sol-gel synthesis. The final SnO2 ordered mesostructures are reminiscent of those linked to MCM-41 and SBA-15 substrates. Pore-size distribution analyses proceeding from N2 sorption isotherms at 76 K on the SnO2 thin films calcined at 500 degrees C unequivocally confirm the presence of tubular mesopores (mode pore sizes ranging from 5 to 7 nm). The thicknesses of the SnO2 films range from 80 to 150 nm after performing a drying process at 100 degrees C and from 70 to 125 nm after calcining in air at 500 degrees C; these film thicknesses show, in general, decreasing trends when either the spinning rate or the H2O/(Sn(OAm(t))4 ratio is increased.     

A simple osmotic stress test to predict boar sperm cryosurvival

This work was carried out to test whether viability of pig spermatozoa subjected to an osmotic test is correlated to sperm cryosurvival. Spermatozoa were cooled from 22 degrees C to -5 degrees C, aliquots were exposed to a series of hyperosmotic solutions (300-2100 mOsm/kg) for 15 min, immediately spermatozoa were re-warmed to 37 degrees C and isosmolarity was restored. Spermatozoa were cooled from 22 degrees C to -5 degrees C and one aliquot was exposed to the osmotic test while diluted spermatozoa were frozen-thawed. Plasma membrane-intact spermatozoa decreased as osmolarity increased (P < 0.0001), a further decreased (P < 0.0001) was observed when isotonicity was restored. Proportions of plasma membrane-intact and acrosome-intact cells from the osmotic test were no different from those after freeze-thawing: 36% vs. 35%, 80% vs. 80%, respectively. A significant correlation was found between the proportion of acrosome-intact cells after freeze-thawing and that from the osmotic test (r = 0.81, P <0.01). This test provides a useful and economical mean to predict in vitro boar sperm cryosurvival.     

Fractional Hamiltonian systems with positive semi-definite matrix

We study the existence of solutions for the following fractional Hamiltonian systems $$ \left\{ \begin{array}{ll} - _tD^{\alpha}_{\infty}(_{-\infty}D^{\alpha}_{t}u(t))-\lambda L(t)u(t)+\nabla W(t,u(t))=0,\\[0.1cm] u\in H^{\alpha}(\mathbb{R},\mathbb{R}^n), \end{array} \right. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~(FHS)_\lambda $$ where $\alpha\in (1/2,1)$, $t\in \mathbb{R}$, $u\in \mathbb{R}^n$, $\lambda>0$ is a parameter, $L\in C(\mathbb{R},\mathbb{R}^{n^2})$ is a symmetric matrix, $W\in C^1(\mathbb{R} \times \mathbb{R}^n,\mathbb{R})$. Assuming that $L(t)$ is a positive semi-definite symmetric matrix, that is, $L(t)\equiv 0$ is allowed to occur in some finite interval $T$ of $\mathbb{R}$, $W(t,u)$ satisfies some superquadratic conditions weaker than Ambrosetti-Rabinowitz condition, we show that (FHS)$_\lambda$ has a solution which vanishes on $\mathbb{R}\setminus T$ as $\lambda \to \infty$, and converges to some $\tilde{u}\in H^{\alpha}(\R, \R^n)$. Here, $\tilde{u}\in E_{0}^{\alpha}$ is a solution of the Dirichlet BVP for fractional systems on the finite interval $T$. Our results are new and improve recent results in the literature even in the case $\alpha =1$.     

Mathematical help-seeking: observing how undergraduate students use the Internet to cope with a mathematical task

ZDM – Mathematics Education - We report on a study focused on identifying how undergraduate students make use of the Internet as a source of help to solve their mathematical queries. In...