Observation of Four Crystalline Phases of the One Dimensional Conductor Zn0.81 [Pt(C2O4)2] . 6D2O by Neutron Diffraction

Four different crystalline phases of Zn_0.81[Pt(C₂O₄)₂].6D₂O have been observed and partially characterized by single crystal neutron diffraction measurements. A crystal in the previously reported orthorphombic α-form was pulled along its c-axis at room temperature and was found to transform to a monoclinic β-form. Two new coexisting phases, monoclinic γ-Zn-OP and orthorhombic δ-Zn-OP were found when the sample was cooled to 200 K. Further crystallographic work is necessary in order to establish the detailed nature of the new phases.     

The Peierls Instability in Pinning Potentials from Counterions

In the presence of a pinning potential both the nature of the Peierls transition and the dynamics of the Charge Density Wave are affected. We argue that the periodic potential stabilizes phase solitons, while amplitude solitons can be polarons or bipolarons. For these excitations we give both the extension along the chain as well as the energies of formation. We only discuss the case of a periodic pinning potential as arising from a counterion lattice; neglecting randomness from impurities.     

DFT studies of structure and vibrational frequencies of isotopically substituted diamin uranyl nitrate using relativistic effective core potentials

The infrared and Raman spectra of UO(2)(NH(3))(2)(NO(3))(2) with (14)NH(3)/(15)NH(3) isotopic substitution were measured. The structure was optimized and the vibrational spectrum was calculated by DFT (B3LYP/6-31G(d)) methodology using relativistic effective core potential for U atom. The results for force constant and vibrational frequencies support the experimental assignments and the proposed model, mainly in the far-infrared region, where the metal-ligand bond and lattice vibrations are observed. Based on the theoretical findings and the observed spectra a structure of distorted D(2h) symmetry with the nitrate group acting like bidentate ligands for the UO(2)(NH(3))(2)(NO(3))(2) is proposed.     

Convolution Inequalities for the Boltzmann Collision Operator

We study integrability properties of a general version of the Boltzmann collision operator for hard and soft potentials in n-dimensions. A reformulation of the collisional integrals allows us to write the weak form of the collision operator as a weighted convolution, where the weight is given by an operator invariant under rotations. Using a symmetrization technique in L ^p we prove a Young’s inequality for hard potentials, which is sharp for Maxwell molecules in the L ² case. Further, we find a new Hardy-Littlewood-Sobolev type of inequality for Boltzmann collision integrals with soft potentials. The same method extends to radially symmetric, non-increasing potentials that lie in some L^s_weak{L^{s}_{weak}} or L ^s . The method we use resembles a Brascamp, Lieb and Luttinger approach for multilinear weighted convolution inequalities and follows a weak formulation setting. Consequently, it is closely connected to the classical analysis of Young and Hardy-Littlewood-Sobolev inequalities. In all cases, the inequality constants are explicitly given by formulas depending on integrability conditions of the angular cross section (in the spirit of Grad cut-off). As an additional application of the technique we also obtain estimates with exponential weights for hard potentials in both conservative and dissipative interactions.     

Can the cosmological dark sector be modeled by a single scalar field?

In a previous paper it was shown that a minimally coupled scalar field of mass \(M \sim H_0\) can describe both components of the dark sector in a unified way. In the solution found, the dark energy component decays linearly with the Hubble parameter, with a homogeneous creation of dark matter. In the present note we show that a \(\Lambda \)CDM dark sector can also be modeled by such a single field. More generally, we show that the system of Klein–Gordon and Einstein equations admits a uniparametric family of solutions that is equivalent to a non-adiabatic (with zero sound speed) generalised Chaplygin gas.     

Chemiluminescent Detection of Carbohydrates in the Tumoral Breast Diseases

Nowadays, there is an increase of investigations into the fibroadenoma, mainly because some studies have shown that the occurrence of fibroadenoma is linked to an increased risk of developing breast carcinoma. Currently, the chemiluminescence biomarkers are applied for validation methods and screening. Here, a lectin chemiluminescence is proposed as new histochemistry method to identify carbohydrates in mammary tumoral tissues. The lectins concanavalin A (Con A) and peanut agglutinin (PNA) conjugated to acridinium ester were used to characterize the glycocode of breast tissues: normal, fibroadenoma, and invasive duct carcinoma (IDC). The lectin chemiluminescence expressed in relative light units (RLU) was higher in fibroadenoma and IDC than in normal tissue for both lectins tested. The relationship RLU emission versus tissue area described a linear and hyperbolic curve for IDC and fibroadenoma, respectively, using Con A whereas hyperbolic curves for both transformed tissues using PNA. RLU was abolished by inhibiting the interaction between tissues and lectins using their specific carbohydrates: methyl-α-d-mannoside (Con A) and galactose (PNA). The intrinsic fluorescence emission did not change with combination of the lectins (Con A/PNA) to the acridinium ester for hydrophobic residues. These results represent the lectin chemiluminescence as an alternative of histochemistry method for tumoral diagnosis in the breast.     

Lectin from Canavalia brasiliensis seeds (ConBr) is a valuable biotechnological tool to stimulate the growth of Rhizobium tropici in vitro

To study the interactions between a Rhizobium tropici strain and lectins isolated from the seeds of Canavalia ensiformis (ConA) and Canavalia brasiliensis (ConBr), a lectin fluorescence assay was performed. In addition, an experiment was designed to evaluate the effect of the two lectins on bacterial growth. Both lectins were found to bind to R. tropici cells, but the interactions were inhibited by D-mannose. Interestingly, only ConBr stimulated bacterial growth in proportion to the concentrations used (15.6-500 μg/mL), and the bacterial growth stimulation was inhibited by D-mannose as well. Structure/Function analyses by bioinformatics were carried out to evaluate the volume and carbohydrate recognition domain (CRD) configuration of ConA and ConBr. The difference of spatial arrangement and volume of CRD may indicate the variation between biological activities of both lectins. The results suggest that ConBr could be a promising tool for studies focusing on the interactions between rhizobia and host plants.     

Impact of the analytical blank in the uncertainty evaluation of the copper content in waters by flame atomic absorption spectrometry

Chemical analysts use analytical blanks in their analyses, but seldom is this source of uncertainty evaluated. Generally, there is great confusion. Although the numerical value of the blank, in some situations, can be negligible, its source of uncertainty cannot be. This article discusses the uncertainty contribution of the analytical blank using a numerical example of the copper content in waters by flame atomic absorption spectrometry. The results indicate that the uncertainties of the analytical blank can contribute up to 50% when the blank sample is considered in this analysis, confirming its high impact. This effect can be primarily observed where the analyte concentration approaches the lower range of the analytical curve. Even so, the blank is not always computed. Therefore, the relevance of the analytical blank can be confirmed by uncertainty evaluation.