Raman and infrared spectra of CdIn2S4 and ZnIn2S4

Four one-phonon Raman lines have been found in CdIn₂S₄ (ZnIn₂S₄) spinels at 92 (72) cm^-1, 186 (184) cm^-1, 246 (253) cm^-1, and 367 (372) cm^-1 for incident photon energies well below the energy gap E_G ～ 2.4 (2.2) eV at 300 K. For photon energies close to E_G, the 367 cm^-1 mode underwent a resonant enhancement in CdIn₂S₄ and four infrared active but Raman forbidden F_1u modes appeared in the CdIn₂S₄ and ZnIn₂S₄ Raman spectra: TO modes at 226 (221) cm^-1 and 309 (312) cm^-1, and LO modes at 274 (272) cm^-1 and 340 (342) cm^-1.     

Amination of ethers using chloramine-T hydrate and a copper(I) catalyst

Amination of C-H bonds activated by ether oxygen atoms is facile with chloramine-T as nitrene source and copper(I) chloride in acetonitrile as catalyst. For cyclic ethers the hemiaminal products are generally stable and can be isolated pure. For acyclic ethers, the hemiaminal products, as expected, fragment with elimination of alcohol to yield imines. When activation of benzylic positions is remote through a conjugated system, stable benzylamine derivatives are isolated. Mechanistic studies are consistent with concerted insertion of an electrophilic nitrenoid into the C-H bond in the rate-determining step, though in an asynchronous manner with a more activated substrate.     

Exclusion limits on the WIMP-nucleon cross section from the cryogenic dark matter search

The Cryogenic Dark Matter Search (CDMS) employs Ge and Si detectors to search for weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs) via their elastic-scattering interactions with nuclei while discriminating against interactions of background particles. CDMS data, accounting for the neutron background, give limits on the spin-independent WIMP-nucleon elastic-scattering cross section that exclude unexplored parameter space above 10 GeV/c2 WIMP mass and, at >75% C.L., the entire 3sigma allowed region for the WIMP signal reported by the DAMA experiment.     

Improved branching ratio measurement for the decay K(0)(L) --> &mgr;(+)&mgr;(-)

We report results from Experiment 871, performed at the BNL AGS, of a measurement of the branching ratio K(0)(L)-->&mgr;(+)&mgr;(-) with respect to the CP-violating mode K(0)(L)-->pi(+)pi(-). This experiment detected over 6200 candidate &mgr;(+)&mgr;(-) events, a factor of 6 more than that seen in all previous measurements combined. The resulting branching ratio gamma(K(0)(L)-->&mgr;(+)&mgr;(-))/gamma(K(0)(L)-->pi(+)pi(-)) = (3. 474+/-0.057)x10(-6) leads to a branching fraction B(K(0)(L)-->&mgr;(+)&mgr;(-)) = (7.18+/-0.17)x10(-9), which is consistent with the current world average, and reduces the uncertainty in this decay mode by a factor of 3.     

Families of univalent functions and Kleinian groups

The paper treats two topics. We obtain new characterizations of quasidiscs using theλ-lemma. We study regularb-groups by combining results on holomorphic families of injections with theorems on algebraic convergence of Kleinian groups and the structure of the Eichler cohomology spaces. We also obtain results about projective structures whose developing maps are coverings. Research partially supported by NSF grant DMS 8401280.     

A modeling concept of a mechanical system having a piecewise linear spring property for its diagnosis

Machine condition monitoring and fault diagnosis of rotating machinery are very important because of the wide use of rotating machinery in industry. Couplings and gears are used in many mechanical systems to connect elements and transmit power. The system is usually modeled as a single-degree-of-freedom system with a piecewise linear spring property, where the mass of main machine is only considered. In the present study, the dynamic behavior of a system with an unsymmetrical nonlinearity and a significant mass of the connecting part was investigated both experimentally and by numerical simulation. In the experiment, a 1/3 sub-harmonic oscillation was observed, but this oscillation was not found in the simulation using a single-degree-of-freedom system, in which the mass of the connecting part was ignored. However, when a two-degrees-of-freedom system was used that considered both the mass of the connecting part and the impact property, the 1/3 sub-harmonic oscillation was observed. Thus it is recognized that an adequate mathematical model for diagnosis in the early stage of abnormality must be selected on the basis of the mass ratio between the connecting part and the main body.     

Stereoelectronic Aspects of the Anomeric Effect in Fluoromethylamine

High-level ab initio calculations have been made for fluoromethylamine to study structural and energetic effects of the relative orientation of the N lone pair to the C? F bond. The anti-conformer (N lone pair anti-planar to the C? F bond) corresponds to the global energy minimum. It has the longest C? F distance, the shortest C? N distance, and is 7.5 kcal·mol^?1 more stable than the related perpendicular conformation (lone pair perpendicular to the C? F bond). The syn-conformation also shows hallmarks of the anomeric effect: long C? F bond, short C? N bond, and energetic stability when allowance is made for the two pairs of eclipsed hydrogens. The transition state for N inversion is close to the syn-structure; rotation about the C? N bond is strongly coupled with this inversion process. Small bond distance changes of ca. 0.02 Å between parallel and perpendicular conformations are associated with dissociation energy differences of ca. 30 kcal·mol^?1. Various criteria for assessing the strength of the anomeric effect are discussed.     

Algebraic thinking with and without algebraic representation: a three-year longitudinal study

An Algebraic Thinking Test was given to 116 students aged 12–14, at the end of each of three years. This age span crosses two levels of school in New Zealand. This test assessed their ability to represent compensation in the four arithmetic operations both numerically and with letters for variables. The analyses of these results, together with the results from separate interviews designed to report individual progress of students in the New Zealand Numeracy Project, showed that students who had developed advanced mental strategies for dealing with additive, multiplicative and proportional operations, were the students who were capable of making full use of the alphanumeric symbols of algebra. These results, taken together with earlier studies by the authors, led to a proposal for a “pathway for algebraic thinking” accessible to all students.