Miscible blends of nitro‐substituted polybenzimidazole and polyetherimide

A novel blend system was prepared by blending organosoluble nitro‐substituted polybenzimidazole (NO₂‐PBI) and polyetherimide (PEI) in a cosolvent at a moderate condition. It was shown that the NO₂‐PBI/PEI blends not only possess tractable processability owing to the enhanced solubility of NO₂‐PBI but also retain the desirable features of unmodified PBI/PEI blends. Apparent miscibility in the blends was observed and attributed to hydrogen‐bonding interactions between N? H groups in NO₂‐PBI and carbonyl groups in PEI. It was revealed that the NO₂‐PBI/PEI blends phase‐separate upon heating above the glass‐transition temperatures. The observed mixing of NO₂‐PBI and PEI in a molecular level, although sustainable only in the glassy region, was shown to lend synergy effects to the physical properties of the blends. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 39: 1778–1783, 2001     

Fe48Co52 Alloy Nanowire Arrays： Effects of Magnetic Field Annealing

The effects of magnetic field annealing on the properties of Fe48Co52 alloy nanowire arrays with various interwire distances （Di=30-60 nm） and wire diameters （Dw=22-46 nm） were investigated in detail. It was found that the array＇s best annealing temperature and crys- talline structure did not show any apparent dependence on the treatment of applying a 3 kOe magnetic field along the wire during the annealing process. For arrays with small Dw or with large Di, the treatment of magnetic field annealing also had no obvious influence on their magnetic performances. However, such a magnetic field annealing constrained the shift of the easy magnetization direction and improved the coercivity and the squareness obviously for arrays with large Dw or with small Di. The difference in the intensity of the effective anisotropic field within the arrays was believed to be responsible for this different variation of the array＇s magnetic properties after magnetic field annealing.     

Luminescent Property of a Supramolecular Silver(I)‐Thiolate Complex Based on Secondary Ag‐S Interactions and Hydrogen Bonds

The supramolecular silver(I)‐thiolate complex [Ag(μ₂‐SC₄N₂H₄)₂(SCN)]_n has been prepared from the reaction of AgSCN and pyrimidine‐2‐thiol in DMF. X‐ray diffraction analysis shows that the supramolecular structure exhibits one‐dimensional chain through the secondary Ag‐S interactions and the chains are further linked by strong hydrogen bonds to form a three dimensional network. The luminescence effect from the silver‐centered state of S→Ag LMCT in solid state is different from that in solution due to the secondary Ag‐S interactions.     

Electronic transport properties of zigzag carbon- and boron-nitride-nanotube heterostructures

Using first-principles density functional theory and non-equilibrium Green's function formalism for quantum transport calculation, we have investigated the electronic transport properties of heteronanotubes by joining a zigzag (6,0) carbon nanotube and a zigzag (6,0) boron nitride nanotube with different atomic compositions and joint configurations. Our results show that the atomic composition and joint configuration affect strongly the electronic transport properties. Obvious negative differential resistance behavior and large rectifying behavior are obtained in the heterostructure with certain composition and joint configuration. Moreover, tube length and tube radius can affect strongly the observed NDR and rectifying behaviors. The observed negative differential resistance and rectifying behaviors are explained in terms of the evolution of the transmission spectrum with applied bias combined with molecular projected self-consistent Hamiltonian states analysis.     

On the spectral radius of a nonnegative centrosymmetric matrix

In this paper, we discuss the spectral radius of nonnegative centrosymmetric matrices. By using the centrosymmetric structure, we establish some estimations of the spectral radius.     

A Bulk Acoustic Wave Viscosity Sensor for Determination of Lysozyme Based on Lysis of Micrococcus Lysodeikeicus

 A method for determination of lysozyme with a Bulk Acoustic Wave (BAW) viscosity sensor is presented. It is based on the bacteriolytic action of lysozyme on Micrococcus lysodeikeicus (M. lysodeikeicus) and the response of the sensor to the viscosity and density change of this process. There was a good correlation between the frequency shift and the concentration of lysozyme in the range 10–100 μg/ml. The content of lysozyme in human saliva was determined by this method and the results obtained were in good agreement with those from the conventional turbidimetric method. This method has an advantage over the conventional turbidimetric method in that the amount of sample needed is smaller, the procedure is simpler and the concentration range of the bacterium suspension which can be used in the detection was extended. Received September 11, 1998. Revision March 15, 1999.