Spectral Theory for a Mathematical Model of the Weak Interaction: The Decay of the Intermediate Vector Bosons W ��, II

We do the spectral analysis of the Hamiltonian for the weak leptonic decay of the gauge bosons W ^±. Using Mourre theory, it is shown that the spectrum between the unique ground state and the first threshold is purely absolutely continuous. Neither sharp neutrino high-energy cutoff nor infrared regularization is assumed.     

Experimental study of cophasing dynamics in passive coherent combining of fiber lasers

We have used a two-channel fiber laser array for the study of cophasing dynamics in a passively locked laser array for coherent combining. Starting from an in-phase laser emission, the array was unbalanced by a short phase perturbation introduced on one arm. The dynamics for recovery of phase locking and recovery of initial power of the laser array have been characterized. Cophasing was found to be quickly restored, in a few cavity rounds, before the gain dynamics brought back the steady-state power.     

Characterization of argon metastable species as function of time, space, and current of a pulsed dc glow discharge

Optical measurements performed through an iCCD camera equipped with an optical bandpass filter have been carried out on a pulsed dc glow discharge (GD) in order to study the spatial, temporal, and current dependency of the 1s₅ (³P₂) Ar metastable (Ar*) species. For the spatial and temporal study the pressure was held constant at 1 hPa. The combination of the iCCD camera with the bandpass filter has allowed to acquire time-resolved images of the Ar* in a spatial region between the cathode and the anode. Those measurements have been performed through optical emission and absorption spectroscopy and have shown that the Ar* during the powering phase of the pulsed GD maximize in a spatial region close to the cathode (ca. 1 mm) and that at the end of the pulsed GD, in the so-called afterglow region, the Ar* maximize in a spatial region far from the cathode (between 6–8 mm). Then they reach their maximum intensity within the first 100 μs and decay within 200–250 μs, both after the end of the GD. It has also been observed that the Ar* species increase by increasing current.     

X-ray and solution structures of Cu(II) GHK and Cu(II) DAHK complexes: influence on their redox properties

The Gly‐His‐Lys (GHK) peptide and the Asp‐Ala‐His‐Lys (DAHK) sequences are naturally occurring high‐affinity copper(II) chelators found in the blood plasma and are hence of biological interest. A structural study of the copper complexes of these peptides was conducted in the solid state and in solution by determining their X‐ray structures, and by using a large range of spectroscopies, including EPR and HYSCORE (hyperfine sub‐level correlation), X‐ray absorption and ¹H and ¹³C NMR spectroscopy. The results indicate that the structures of [Cu^II(DAHK)] in the solid state and in solution are similar and confirm the equatorial coordination sphere of NH₂, two amidyl N and one imidazole N. Additionally, a water molecule is bound apically to Cu^II as revealed by the X‐ray structure. As reported previously in the literature, [Cu^II(GHK)], which exhibits a dimeric structure in the solid state, forms a monomeric complex in solution with three nitrogen ligands: NH₂, amidyl and imidazole. The fourth equatorial site is occupied by a labile oxygen atom from a carboxylate ligand in the solid state. We probe that fourth position and study ternary complexes of [Cu^II(GHK)] with glycine or histidine. The Cu^II exchange reaction between different DAHK peptides is very slow, in contrast to [Cu^II(GHK)], in which the fast exchange was attributed to the presence of a [Cu^II(GHK)₂] complex. The redox properties of [Cu^II(GHK)] and [Cu^II(DAHK)] were investigated by cyclic voltammetry and by measuring the ascorbate oxidation in the presence of molecular oxygen. The measurements indicate that both Cu^II complexes are inert under moderate redox potentials. In contrast to [Cu^II(DAHK)], [Cu^II(GHK)] could be reduced to Cu^I around ?0.62 V (versus AgCl/Ag) with subsequent release of the Cu ion. These complete analyses of structure and redox activity of those complexes gave new insights with biological impact and can serve as models for other more complicated Cu^II–peptide interactions.     

Photochromic and reductive electrochemical switching of a dithiazolylethene with large redox modulation

A new dipyridylthiazolylethene (1a) and its dicationic analogue (2a), with two N-methylated pyridyl rings, have been synthesized and structurally characterized. Due to the N-methylation of the pyridyl rings, 2 a displays not only very different photochromic properties, but also undergoes a reductive ring-closing reaction to generate its closed-ring isomer 2b. Careful electrochemical studies coupled with EPR spectroscopy show that this reductive ring-closing reaction takes place when 2a is two-electron reduced. DFT calculations suggest that such a ground-state electrocyclization is driven by a very large stabilization of the reduced closed-ring isomer 2b relative to the reduced open-ring isomer 2a. In addition, 2b exhibits two successive and reversible one-electron reductions at half-wave potentials of 0.04 and -0.14 V versus SCE and a redox modulation as large as 1 V is achieved when passing from 2a to 2b.     

Recognition of G-quadruplex DNA by triangular star-shaped compounds: with or without side chains?

We report the synthesis of two new series of triangular aromatic platforms, either with three aminoalkyl side chains (triazatrinaphthylene series, TrisK: six compounds), or without side chains (triazoniatrinaphthylene, TrisQ). The quadruplex-DNA binding behavior of the two series, which differ essentially by the localization of the cationic charges, was evaluated by means of FRET-melting and G4-FID assays. For the trisubstituted triazatrinaphthylenes (TrisK), the length of the substituents and the presence of terminal hydrogen-bond-donor groups (NH(2)) were shown to be crucial for ensuring a high quadruplex affinity (ΔT(1/2) values of up to 20 °C at 1 μM for the best candidate, TrisK3-NH) and selectivity versus duplex DNA. Subsequently, comparison of data collected on both the telomeric- and c-myc-quadruplex showed that the nonsubstituted TrisQ is even more efficient than TrisK3-NH, both in terms of quadruplex affinity (ΔT(1/2)=26 °C in K(+) buffer) and selectivity versus duplex DNA. Structural considerations conducted with the c-myc quadruplex indicate that both TrisK3-NH and TrisQ stack well onto the G-quartet but in an offset position, which might be influenced by the formation of multiple hydrogen bonds with the target in the former case. Finally, the nonsubstituted TrisQ displays a binding profile very similar to some of the best quadruplex binders, BRACO-19 and bisquinolinium 360A, used herein as references, and thereby represents a highly promising novel molecular design for quadruplex recognition.     

Analysis of hyperfine structure of Rare‐Earth Ions in Single Crystals by Electron Paramagnetic Resonance Spectroscopy

Electron paramagnetic spectroscopy of rare‐earth ions in single crystals is an interesting tool to analyze the hyperfine structure of the ground state of the rare‐earth. This can be useful for coherent spectroscopy and quantum information applications where the hyperfine structure of the electronic levels is used. Moreover, in some cases, the electron paramagnetic resonance hyperfine structure of interacting rare‐earth ions allows us to retrieve the isotropic exchange interaction between the two interacting ions. We illustrate these points with the hyperfine structure of Yb³⁺ ions in vanadate crystals, the hyperfine structure of Er³⁺ ions in Y₂SiO₅, and the hyperfine structure of Yb³⁺ pairs in CsCdBr₃.     

Side-pumped continuous-wave Cr:Nd:YAG ceramic solar laser

To clarify the advantages of Cr:Nd:YAG ceramics rods in solar-pumped lasers, a fused silica light guide with rectangular cross-section is coupled to a compound V-shaped cavity within which a 7 mm diameter 0.1 at.% Cr:1.0 at.% Nd:YAG ceramic rod is uniformly pumped. The highly concentrated solar radiation at the focal spot of a 2 m diameter stationary parabolic mirror is transformed into a uniform pump radiation by the light guide. Efficient pump light absorption is achieved by pumping uniformly the ceramic rod within the V-shaped cavity. Optimum pumping parameters and solar laser output powers are found through ZEMAX^© non-sequential ray-tracing and LASCAD^© laser cavity analysis codes. 33.6 W continuous-wave laser power is measured, corresponding to 1.32 times enhancement over our previous results with a 4 mm diameter Nd:YAG single-crystal rod. High slope efficiency of 2.6 % is also registered. The solar laser output performances of both the ceramic and the single-crystal rods are finally compared, revealing the relative advantage of the Cr:Nd:YAG rod in conversion efficiency. Low scattering coefficient of 0.0018 cm^?1 is deduced for the ceramic rod. Heat load is considered as a key factor affecting the ceramic laser output performance.     

Fine Boundary Behavior and Invariant Subspaces of Harmonically Weighted Dirichlet Spaces

We study the boundary behavior of functions in spaces of Dirichlet-type by using non-linear capacities generalizing the logarithmic capacity. We use these capacities to obtain information about the invariant subspaces of the shift operator. As an application, we prove an analogue of a conjecture of Brown and Shields when the space is weighted by the Poisson integral of a finite sum of atoms.     

Further Riccati Differential Equations with Elliptic Coefficients and Meromorphic Solutions

We exhibit some families of Riccati differential equations in the complex domain having elliptic coefficients and study the problem of understanding the cases where there are no multivalued solutions. We give criteria ensuring that all the solutions to these equations are meromorphic functions defined in the whole complex plane, and highlight some cases where all solutions are, furthermore, doubly periodic.