3He spin-dependent cross sections and sum rules

We present a measurement of the spin-dependent cross sections for the 3He over -->(e over -->,e')X reaction in the quasielastic and resonance regions at a four-momentum transfer 0.1< or =Q2< or =0.9 GeV2. The spin-structure functions have been extracted and used to evaluate the nuclear Burkhardt-Cottingham and extended Gerasimov-Drell-Hearn sum rules for the first time. The data are also compared to an impulse approximation calculation and an exact three-body Faddeev calculation in the quasielastic region.     

Emission characterization of a single CdSe-ZnS nanocrystal with high temporal and spectral resolution by photon-correlation Fourier spectroscopy

We report a spectroscopic study of single colloidal CdSe/ZnS nanocrystals at low temperature. We use photon-correlation Fourier spectroscopy, a technique based on measuring the correlations of the intensities detected at the outputs of a Michelson interferometer. Spectral diffusion over a few microeV is evidenced, on a typical time scale of 200 micros. A time resolution as high as 20 micros is obtained, and an upper limit of 6.5 microeV emission linewidth is measured, corresponding to a coherence time of at least 200 ps, similar to the values for epitaxial quantum dots.     

Simulation of the thermal transfer during an eutectic melting of a binary solution

The main objective of this paper is to present a model for the heat transfer in the case of the melting of saline binary solution. This model is applied to calorimetry in order to determine the kinetics of the eutectic melting. The investigated cell containing the solution is a cylinder of a few mm³ in volume. By simulation, we could replicate the shape of the experimental thermogramms. The validation of the model permits determining some parameters which are inaccessible due to the small size of the cell, like the space-time evolution of the temperature inside the differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) sample.     

Le dosage de l'oxygene au moyen de particules chargees dans le silicium et le germanium. Mises au point relatives aux reactions parasites et a l'isolement du fluor-18

Résumé Le dosage de l'oxygène par radioactivation avec les particules chargées alphas et hélions-3 a été appliqué au silicium et au germanium. Des précisions ont été apportées aux conditions opératoires en analyse non destructive qui est utilisable à l'heure actuelle en toute sécurité pour le silicium. Une méthode nouvelle d'isolement du fluor-18 est proposée en présence des activités étrangères créées à partir de la matrice dans l'irradiation du germanium.     

Characterisation of hydrolysable tannins from leaves of Betula pubescens by high-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry

A high-performance liquid chromatography-electrospray ionisation mass spectrometry (HPLC-ESI-MS) method, assisted by diode array detection, for the characterisation of individual hydrolysable tannins in birch leaves was developed. With the method, it was found that birch (Betula pubescens) leaves contained an exceptionally complex mixture of hydrolysable tannins; 14 gallotannins and 20 ellagitannins were identified. The developed HPLC-ESI-MS method allows the qualitative and quantitative determination of individual gallotannins and ellagitannins directly from crude birch leaf extract. This is important in studying ecological functions of these phenolic compounds, especially their role in the resistance of birch leaves against insects.     

Comparison of supervised pattern recognition methods with McNemar’s statistical test: Application to qualitative analysis of sugar beet by near-infrared spectroscopy

The application of supervised pattern recognition methodology is becoming important within chemistry. The aim of the study is to compare classification method accuracies by the use of a McNemar’s statistical test. Three qualitative parameters of sugar beet are studied: disease resistance (DR), geographical origins and crop periods. Samples are analyzed by near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) and by wet chemical analysis (WCA). Firstly, the performances of eight well-known classification methods on NIRS data are compared: Linear Discriminant Analysis (LDA), K-Nearest Neighbors (KNN) method, Soft Independent Modeling of Class Analogy (SIMCA), Discriminant Partial Least Squares (DPLS), Procrustes Discriminant Analysis (PDA), Classification And Regression Tree (CART), Probabilistic Neural Network (PNN) and Learning Vector Quantization (LVQ) neural network are computed. Among the three data sets, SIMCA, DPLS and PDA have the highest classification accuracies. LDA and KNN are not significantly different. The non-linear neural methods give the less accurate results. The three most accurate methods are linear, non-parametric and based on modeling methods. Secondly, we want to emphasize the power of near-infrared reflectance data for sample discrimination. McNemar’s tests compare classification developed with WCA or with NIRS data. For two of the three data sets, the classification results are significantly improved by the use of NIRS data.     

Theoretical study of the internal elimination reactions of xanthate precursors

The gas‐phase internal elimination (E_i) reaction of ethyl xanthate (CH₃‐CH₂‐S‐CS‐O‐CH₃) has been investigated by means of Hartree–Fock, second‐order Møller–Plesset, and density functional theory (DFT) using the Becke three‐parameter Lee–Yang–Parr (B3LYP) functional and the modified Perdew–Wang one‐parameter model for kinetics (MPW1K). Considerable differences between the ground‐ and transition‐state geometries and the calculated activation energies are observed from one approach to the other, which justifies first a careful calibration of the methods against the results of benchmark CCSD(T) calculations. Compared with these, DFT calculations along with the MPW1K functional are found to be an appropriate choice for describing the E_i reaction of xanthate precursors. The precursor conformation and the transition states involved in the internal conversion of xanthate precursors of cyano derivatives of ethylene, and of cis‐ and trans‐stilbene, are then characterized in detail by means of this functional. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Comput Chem 24: 2023–2031, 2003     

Quantification of docetaxel and its main metabolites in human plasma by liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry

Docetaxel is an antineoplastic agent widely used in therapeutics. The objective of this study was to develop and validate a routine assay, using liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS), for the simultaneous quantification of docetaxel and its main hydroxylated metabolites in human plasma. A structural analogue, paclitaxel, was used as the internal standard. Determination of docetaxel and four metabolites (M1, M2, M3 and M4) was achieved using only 100 microL of plasma. Liquid-liquid extraction was used for sample preparation, with extraction efficiency of at least 90% for all analytes. Detection used positive-mode electrospray ionization in selected reaction monitoring mode. The lower limit of quantification (LLOQ) was 0.5 ng/mL for all analytes. The assay was linear in the calibration curve range 0.5-1000 ng/mL and acceptable precision and accuracy (<15%) were obtained with concentrations above the LLOQ. This method was sufficiently selective and sensitive for quantification of metabolites in plasma from cancer patients receiving docetaxel chemotherapy, and is suitable for routine analyses during pharmacokinetic studies.     

Electric-field-controlled water and ion permeation of a hydrophobic nanopore

The permeation of hydrophobic, cylindrical nanopores by water molecules and ions is investigated under equilibrium and out-of-equilibrium conditions by extensive molecular-dynamics simulations. Neglecting the chemical structure of the confining pore surface, we focus on the effects of pore radius and electric field on permeation. The simulations confirm the intermittent filling of the pore by water, reported earlier under equilibrium conditions for pore radii larger than a critical radius R(c). Below this radius, water can still permeate the pore under the action of a strong electric field generated by an ion concentration imbalance at both ends of the pore embedded in a structureless membrane. The water driven into the channel undergoes considerable electrostriction characterized by a mean density up to twice the bulk density and by a dramatic drop in dielectric permittivity which can be traced back to a considerable distortion of the hydrogen-bond network inside the pore. The free-energy barrier to ion permeation is estimated by a variant of umbrella sampling for Na(+), K(+), Ca(2+), and Cl(-) ions, and correlates well with known solvation free energies in bulk water. Starting from an initial imbalance in ion concentration, equilibrium is gradually restored by successive ion passages through the water-filled pore. At each passage the electric field across the pore drops, reducing the initial electrostriction, until the pore, of radius less than R(c), closes to water and hence to ion transport, thus providing a possible mechanism for voltage-dependent gating of hydrophobic pores.