How the First Partial Transpose was Written

We tell the tale of the first writing of a partial transpose, without guaranteeing historical authenticity. Dedicated to Prof. Asher Peres, Haifa, on the occasion of his 70th birthday.     

Folding and unfolding of an elastinlike oligopeptide: "inverse temperature transition," reentrance, and hydrogen-bond dynamics

The temperature-dependent behavior of a solvated oligopeptide, GVG(VPGVG), is investigated. Spectroscopic measurements, thermodynamic measurements, and molecular dynamics simulations find that this elastinlike octapeptide behaves as a two-state system that undergoes an "inverse temperature" folding transition and reentrant unfolding close to the boiling point of water. A molecular picture of these processes is presented, emphasizing changes in the dynamics of hydrogen bonding at the protein/water interface and peptide backbone librational entropy.     

Electronic control of chiral quaternary center creation in the intramolecular asymmetric heck reaction

The Boehringer-Ingelheim phosphinoimidazoline (BIPI) ligands were applied to the formation of chiral quaternary centers in the asymmetric Heck reaction. Several different substrates were examined in detail, using more than 70 members of this new ligand class. Hammett relationships were determined through systematic variation of the ligand electronics. All substrates showed essentially the same Hammett behavior, where enantioselectivity increased as the ligands were made more electron-deficient. Ligand optimization has led to catalysts which give the highest enantioselectivities reported to date for these difficult systems.     

A simple geometrical model for emulsifier free polymer colloid formation

In this paper we propose a simple model for the formation of monodisperse polymer colloids, which provides a convenient set of synthetic parameters for given bead diameters. We provide experimental data in support of this model.     

Models for biological trinuclear copper clusters. Characterization and enantioselective catalytic oxidation of catechols by the copper(II) complexes of a chiral ligand derived from (S)-(-)-1,1'-binaphthyl-2,2'-diamine

The dinuclear and trinuclear Cu(II) complexes of an octadentate ligand derived from (S)-1,1'-binaphthyl-2,2'-diamine have been prepared and characterized by UV/Vis, CD, EPR and NMR spectroscopy. The ligand contains two tridentate aminobis(benzimidazole) donor arms connected to a central bidentate diaminobinaphthyl linker, which hosts the chiral unit. In the dinuclear Cu complex the ligation occurs essentially within the tridentate arms of the ligand. The two Cu centers are EPR nonequivalent and noninteracting. The EPR data suggests that one of the Cu ions additionally interacts with one of the tertiary aminonaphthyl donors. In the trinuclear complex the two aminonaphthyl donors bind the third Cu ion. The EPR spectrum of this complex shows the signal for a mononuclear Cu(II) center bound to a tridentate arm, while the remaining two Cu(II) centers are coupled through hydroxo groups. The CD spectrum shows that in the free ligand a severe reduction of the dihedral angle between the naphthyl groups from the strain free range occurs. This conformation is stabilized by ring stacking interactions with the benzimidazole groups. On complex formation this interaction is removed because the benzimidazole groups are involved in metal binding. In the dinuclear Cu complex the conformation of the binaphthyl chromophore probably approaches the strain free range, while in the trinuclear Cu complex a marked flattening of the dihedral angle between the two naphthyl rings occurs. Both complexes are active catalysts in the oxidation of L-/D-Dopa derivatives to quinones. High enantioselectivity is observed in the oxidation of L-/D-Dopa methyl ester catalyzed by the dinuclear Cu complex, which exhibits strong preference for the d enantiomer. The enantioselectivity is largely lost for the trinuclear Cu complex.     

On the Entanglement Structure in Quantum Cloning

We study the entanglement properties of the output state of a universal cloning machine. We analyse in particular bipartite and tripartite entanglement of the clones, and discuss the classical limit of infinitely many output copies.     

Experimental study of the pH influence on the transport mechanisms of phenols in soil

The study of the transport mechanisms connected to solid-liquid interactions is fundamental in the determination of the extension of the pollution of a site and in the evaluation of the best remediation process to be applied. The sorption of hydrophobic ionizable organic contaminants from the groundwaters is supervised not only by the physico-chemical properties of soil and pollutants, but also by the groundwaters pH, which deeply influences their solubility in the aqueous media, and consequently their transport mechanisms in the aquifer. In this work an experimental study of the sorption of phenol and 2-nitrophenol on two soils, different in particle-size distribution, CEC and organic carbon content, was realized. The sorption potential of the soils was evaluated by means of a physical, mineralogical and chemical characterization. The experimental data coming from some batch tests, performed at pH values equal to 4, 7 and 10 were fitted by means of linear, Freundlich and Langmuir isotherms models. The soil-contaminants interaction mechanisms that influence the isotherms shapes were then analyzed and discussed, and a comparison between the theoretical and experimental values of the partitioning coefficient KD was performed.     

Easy Access to Phosphido-Selenido Clusters. Reaction of [Ru3(CO)12] with Ph2(pyth)PSe {pyth=5-(2-Pyridyl)-2-Thienyl} and Crystal Structure of [Ru3(μ3-Se)(μ-PPh2)(μ-pyth)(CO)6{P(pyth)Ph2}]

The reaction of [Ru₃(CO)₁₂] with Ph₂(pyth)PSe (pyth=5-(2-pyridyl)-2-thienyl) allows to obtain two novel clusters [Ru₃(₃-Se)₂(CO)₇{P(pyth)Ph₂}₂] 1 and [Ru₃(₃-Se)(-PPh₂)(-pyth)(CO)₆{P(pyth)Ph₂}] 2 in satisfactory yields. The first one exhibits the well-known bicapped, open triangular, 50-electron nido-core, whereas 2, whose crystal structure has been determined, shows the rather rare Ru₃Se tetrahedron with the Ph₂P and pyth fragments as side-bridging ligands. Morever cluster 2 belongs to the exiguous family of selenido-phosphido clusters not easily achievable by other routes.     

Synthesis of octahedral zirconium complex bearing [NHC?O] ligands,and its behavior as catalyst in the polymerization of olefins

The synthesis and characterization of a zirconium complex, having two alkoxide functionalized N‐heterocyclic carbene ligands, and its behavior as catalyst in the polymerization of ethylene and propylene, have been reported. NMR analysis showed that more than one species was obtained during synthesis. These data were confirmed by ethylene polymerization that gave rise to a linear polyethylene having a high Molecular weight and a polydispersity index (MDI) > 2 and often bimodal. The same catalytic system was able to produce highly isotactic polypropylene together with an atactic fraction. DFT studies on the complex stereoisomer stability gave indications on the species possibly involved in the polymerizations. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2011