In situ monitoring of the H concentration change near an electrode surface through electrolysis using slab optical waveguide pH sensor

The H⁺ concentration change was monitored near an electrode surface through an electrolysis using a slab optical waveguide technique. Indium tin oxide transparent electrode modified by porous insulating polymer to which methyl red was covalently immobilized was used as a guiding layer, and the absorbance change of the polymer film was monitored. H⁺ generation at the vicinity of the electrode through the oxidation of ascorbic acid could be monitored by this technique.     

Electrochemical tuning of the optoelectronic properties of a fluorene-based conjugated polymer

The electrochemical reduction of a fluorene-based conjugated polymer, poly(9-fluorenone-alt-9,9-dioctylfluorene), was investigated for the first time. The carbonyl group in the fluorenone unit was selectively and quantitatively converted to the methylene group, as determined by (1)H NMR, IR, and energy-dispersive X-ray (EDX) analysis. The optical and electrochemical properties of the polymers were studied by UV-vis, photoluminescence (PL), and cyclic voltammetry (CV) measurements and were found to be tunable by varying the reduction level.     

Testing gravity using the environmental dependence of dark matter halos

In this Letter, we investigate the environmental dependence of dark matter halos in theories which attempt to explain the accelerated expansion of the Universe by modifying general relativity (GR). Using high-resolution N-body simulations in f(R) gravity models which recover GR in dense environments by virtue of the chameleon mechanism, we find a significant difference, which depends on the environment, between the lensing and dynamical masses of dark matter halos. This environmental dependence of the halo properties can be used as a smoking gun to test GR observationally.     

Investigation of void formation beneath thin AlN layers by decomposition of sapphire substrates for self-separation of thick AlN layers grown by HVPE

Void formation at the interface between thick AlN layers and (0 0 0 1) sapphire substrates was investigated to form a predefined separation point of the thick AlN layers for the preparation of freestanding AlN substrates by hydride vapor phase epitaxy (HVPE). By heating 50–200 nm thick intermediate AlN layers above 1400 °C in a gas flow containing H₂ and NH₃, voids were formed beneath the AlN layers by the decomposition reaction of sapphire with hydrogen diffusing to the interface. The volume of the sapphire decomposed at the interface increased as the temperature and time of the heat treatment was increased and as the thickness of the AlN layer decreased. Thick AlN layers subsequently grown at 1450 °C after the formation of voids beneath the intermediate AlN layer with a thickness of 100 nm or above self-separated from the sapphire substrates during post-growth cooling with the aid of voids. The 79 μm thick freestanding AlN substrate obtained using a 200 nm thick intermediate AlN layer had a flat surface with no pits, high optical transparency at wavelengths above 208.1 nm, and a dislocation density of 1.5×10⁸ cm⁻².     

Preparation and characterization of conducting trimetallic nickel-dithiolene complexes with bridging tetrathiooxalate ligands

Trimetallic nickel dithiolene complexes with two tetrathiooxalate (tto) ligands were obtained by a reaction monitored by ESI-mass spectrometry followed by HPLC separation and were characterized by elemental or crystal structural analysis, MO calculations, and electrical conductivity measurements.     

Studies on the syntheses of heteroeyelie compounds. Part DVII. A synthesis of (±)-N-norgalanthamine

(±)-N-Norgalanthamine (la) and (±)-N-norlycoramine (Ib) was synthesized through the phenolie oxidation of N-(4-hydroxyphenethyl)-2-bromo-5-hydroxy-4-methoxybenzamide (lIb).     

Layered assemblies of a dialuminum-substituted silicotungstate trimer and the reversible interlayer cation-exchange properties

Two polyoxometalate assemblies, TBA(9)[{γ-H(2)SiW(10)O(36)Al(2)(μ-OH)(2)(μ-OH)}(3)] (1; TBA = tetra-n-butylammonium) and TBA(6)Li(3)[{γ-H(2)SiW(10)O(36)Al(2)(μ-OH)(2)(μ-OH)}(3)]·18H(2)O (2), were synthesized by trimerization of a dialuminum-substituted silicotungstate monomer. Both 1 and 2 possessed a layered structure composed of a basal sheet unit [TBA(3){γ-H(2)SiW(10)O(36)Al(2)(μ-OH)(2)(μ-OH)}(3)](6-) and interlayer cations. The interconversion between 1 and 2 reversibly took place through interlayer cation exchange.     

Improvement of boundary conditions for non-planar boundaries represented by polygons with an initial particle arrangement technique

The boundary conditions represented by polygons in moving particle semi-implicit (MPS) method (Koshizuka and Oka, Nuclear Science and Engineering, 1996 Koshizuka, S., and Y. Oka. 1996. “Moving-Particle Semi-Implicit Method for Fragmentation of Incompressible Fluid.” Nuclear Science and Engineering 123: 421–434.[Taylor &; Francis Online], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) have been widely used in the industry simulations since it can simply simulate complex geometry with high efficiency. However, the inaccurate particle number density near non-planar wall boundaries dramatically affects the accuracy of simulations. In this paper, we propose an initial boundary particle arrangement technique coupled with the wall weight function method (Zhang et al. Transaction of JSCES, 2015 Zhang, T.G., S. Koshizuka, K. Shibata, K. Murotani, and E. Ishii. 2015. “Improved Wall Weight Function With Polygon Boundary in Moving Particle Semi-Implicit Method.” Transaction of JSCES. No. 20150012. [Google Scholar]) to improve the particle number density near slopes and curved surfaces with boundary conditions represented by polygons in three dimensions. Two uniform grids are utilized in the proposed technique. The grid points in the first uniform grid are used to construct boundary particles, and the second uniform grid stores the same information as in the work by Zhang et al. The wall weight functions of the grid points in the second uniform grid are calculated by newly constructed boundary particles. The wall weight functions of the fluid particles are interpolated from the values stored on the grid points in the second uniform grid. Because boundary particles are located on the polygons, complex geometries can be accurately represented. The proposed method can dramatically improve the particle number density and maintain the high efficiency. The performance of the previously proposed wall weight function (Zhang et al.) with the boundary particle arrangement technique is verified in comparison with the wall weight function without boundary particle arrangement by investigating two example geometries. The simulations of a water tank with a wedge and a complex geometry show the general applicability of the boundary particle arrangement technique to complex geometries and demonstrate its improvement of the wall weight function near the slopes and curved surfaces.     

Calorimetric study of the cubic mesogen, ACBC(6)

The heat capacity of the cubic mesogen ACBC(16) was measured between 16 and 500 K by adiabatic calorimetry. As well as the known condensed phases, a new crystalline phase was found to undergo a glass transition at around 165 K. Phase transitions between crystal, SmC, cubic, and isotropic liquid phases took place at 399.16, 431.15, and 474.30 K, respectively. As in the case of ANBC, a broad hump was observed in the heat capacity of the isotropic liquid phase. The first order nature of the SmC-cubic phase transition was confirmed for the first time by the observation of supercooling of the cubic phase. The broad hump in the isotropic liquid phase was shown to extend to a low temperature side if the isotropic liquid was supercooled, suggesting that the event occurring at the hump is not directly related to the cubic-isotropic liquid phase transition.     

Unusually large magnetic anisotropy in a CuO-based semiconductor Cu5V2O10

A CuO-based material Cu(5)V(2)O(10) was successfully grown in a closed crucible using Sr(OH)(2)·8H(2)O as flux. The structure of Cu(5)V(2)O(10) can be viewed as being composed of two types of zigzag Cu-O chains running along the b- and c-axes, which shows a two-dimensional crosslike framework with 12-column square tunnels along the a-axis. Magnetic measurements show that Cu(5)V(2)O(10) exhibits unexpected large magnetic anisotropy, which is the first time magnetic anisotropy energy of ～10(7) erg/cm(3) in the CuO-based materials has been observed. The origins of large anisotropy are suggested to arise from strong anisotropic exchanges due to the particular bonding geometry and the Jahn-Teller distortion of Cu(2+) ions. Further, the band structure investigated by the GGA+U method suggests that Cu(5)V(2)O(10) is a semiconductor.