A novel solution-processible heterodinuclear AlIII/IrIII complex for host-dopant assembly OLEDs

A discrete heterodinuclear Al (III)/Ir (III) complex shows bright-orange light emission when used as an active layer in host-dopant assembly organic light-emitting diodes based on a solution process.     

Reactive Core-Shell Bottlebrush Copolymer as Highly Effective Additive for Epoxy Toughening

Herein,we designed a core-shell structured bottlebrush copolymer (BBP),which is composed of rubbery poly(butyl acrylate) (PBA)core and an epoxy miscible/reactive poly(glycidyl methacrylate) (PGMA) shell,as an epoxy toughening agent.The PGMA shell allows BBP to be uniformly dispersed within the epoxy matrix and to react with the epoxy groups,while the rubbery PBA block simultaneously induced nanocavitation effect,leading to improvement of mechanical properties of the epoxy resin.The mechanical properties were measured by the adhesion performance test,and the tensile and fracture test using universal testing machine.When BBP additives were added to the epoxy resin,a significant improvement in the adhesion strength (2-fold increase) and fracture toughness (2-fold increase in Klc and 5-fold increase in Glc)compared to the neat epoxy was observed.In contrast,linear additives exhibited a decrease in adhesion strength and no improvement of fracture toughness over the neat epoxy.Such a difference in mechanical performance was investigated by comparing the morphologies and fracture surfaces of the epoxy resins containing linear and BBP additives,confirming that the nanocavitation effect and void formation play a key role in strengthening the BBP-modified epoxy resins.     

The use of FTIR and NMR spectroscopies to study prepolymerisation interactions in nitrogen heterocycles

A detailed investigation into the functional groups responsible for the formation of a noncovalent complex between 2-aminopyridine (template) and methacrylic acid (functional monomer) has been carried out using FTIR spectroscopy and confirmed by ¹H NMR spectroscopic data. The approach adopted to confirm the mechanism of interaction was the analysis of the template plus the structurally similar 2-methylaminopyridine and 2-dimethylaminopyridine. A 1:1 stoichiometry of complexation was determined by Job plot analysis following titration, with FTIR results complementing those of the ¹H NMR study. The strength of interaction between 2-aminopyridine and the functional monomer measured through band shifts by FTIR spectroscopy was compared with such interactions for the isomers 3- and 4-aminopyridine. This comparison identified a clear correlation between template pK _a, degree of interaction and subsequent nonspecific binding in the nonimprinted polymer. Using FTIR spectroscopy it was also possible to observe the effect of temperature on the prepolymerisation solution. IR spectra showed that lower temperatures led to more stabilized interactions of the hydrogen-bonded complex. The potential advantages of FTIR spectroscopy compared with ¹H NMR spectroscopy in studying prepolymerisation solutions have been identified.     

Effect of phospholipid insertion on arrayed polydiacetylene biosensors

Micro-arrayed polydiacetylene (PDA) vesicles mixed with phospholipids on glass slides were prepared for label-free detection of Escherichia coli. When E. coli bound to its antibodies chemically attached to polydiacetylene, the fluorescence of the vesicles was dramatically increased. The insertion of dimyristoyl phosphatidylcholine (DMPC) in the vesicles drastically reduced the response time for the fluorescence changes. Vesicles with 20-30% DMPC provided optimal results for bacterial detection. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectra analysis suggested that DMPC insertion decreased the strength of hydrogen bonding among the amide and carboxylic acid groups of the polydiacetylene vesicles. Reduced bonding strength resulted in less rigid structure of the polydiacetylene polymer, allowing more rapid detection upon molecular recognition.     

Rapid induction of thermoreversible hydrogel formation based on poly(propylene glycol)-grafted dextran inclusion complexes

Poly(propylene glycol) (PPG)-grafted dextran was synthesized by conjugating amino-terminated PPG with hydroxyl groups of dextran, and its inclusion complexation property was investigated. The average number of grafted PPG per dextran was changeable in the range of 1.1 to 38.5. The formation of inclusion complexes between the PPG grafts and β-cyclodextrins (β-CDs) and their crystalline structures were characterized by ¹³C CP/MAS NMR and X-ray spectroscopies. These hydrogel systems showed a thermally reversible sol–gel transition based on supramolecular assembly and dissociation between host and guest moieties. The results of rheological measurements and sol–gel transition temperature of the hydrogels suggested that the aggregated channel-type crystalline domain was critical to control the transition temperature in terms of initial feed molar ratio of PPG and β-CD and the graft number of PPG constituents. These thermoreversible hydrogel systems showed rapid gelation properties, which may be useful for biomedical application, especially injectable drug delivery systems.

Sol–gel phase transition of ICs between PPG-grafted dextrans and β-CDs. (conc. of IC was fixed at 20 wt.-%).     

Synthesis of α‐Cyclodextrin‐Conjugated Poly(ε‐lysine)s and Their Inclusion Complexation Behavior

Novel functional polymers utilizing specific host/guest interactions were designed by introducing α‐CD host molecules into poly(ε‐lysine) chains as side groups. An interesting phase separation was observed as a result of the inclusion complexation between the polymeric host and 3‐(trimethylsilyl)propionic acid as a model guest in aqueous media. This water‐soluble polymeric host would be useful for various applications, particularly drug delivery, due to its biodegradability, low toxicity, and unique functionality represented as a complexation‐induced phase separation.     

A time-domain circuit simulator for coupled-cavity traveling-wavetubes

The Curnow equivalent circuit was used to predict the dispersion of cold coupled-cavity traveling-wave tubes, as wen as the voltage and current characteristics for lossless and lossy multicavity circuits. The equivalent circuit is extended to have three ports. The added beam port allows the future modeling of the interaction between beam and cavity. Losses are introduced into the circuit as resistors in series with the corresponding inductors. The time-domain solution to the multicavity circuit is developed. It can be applied to the full-spectrum signal. It is also useful for the transient analysis for both single frequency and full-spectrum signals, including the turn-on transients. Numerical methods to solve the time-domain equations are discussed; a second-order leap-frog method and a fourth-order Runge-Kutta method are implemented and analyzed. Simulation results from both codes are compared, and match well with the theory     

Experimental lower bounds on geometrically necessary dislocation density

A single nickel crystal is indented with a wedge indenter such that a two-dimensional deformation state with three effective plane strain slip systems is induced. The in-plane lattice rotation of the crystal lattice is measured with a three micrometer spatial resolution using Orientation Imaging Microscopy (OIM). All non-zero components of the Nye dislocation density tensor are calculated from the lattice rotation field. A rigorous analytical expression is derived for the lower bound of the total Geometrically Necessary Dislocation (GND) density. Existence and uniqueness of the lower bound are demonstrated, and the apportionment of the total GND density onto the effective individual slip systems is determined. The lower bound solution reduces to the exact solution under circumstances in which only one or two of the effective slip systems are known to have been activated. The results give insight into the active slip systems as well as the dislocation structures formed in the nickel crystal as a result of the wedge indentation.