Towards measurement of recoils below 4 keV with the ROSEBUD experiment

An experiment to look for light WIMPs with sapphire bolometers is to be installed in the Canfranc Underground Laboratory (at 2450 m.w.e) in the Spanish Pyrenees. In the first stage two small 25g bolometers with NTD-Ge sensors, operating at 25mK, with an energy threshold of 300eV and FWHM energy resolution of 120eV at 1.5keV will perform a background test experiment. The features of the bolometers, the radioactivity measurements of the components and the set-up and status of the experiment are reported.     

Approximate varieties, approximate ideals and dimension reduction

We consider a method to determine, for a given finite set of points, an algebraic variety of small degree which contains these points. In contrast to most other algorithms in Computer Algebra, this one is adapted to numerical, inexact computations. Dedicated to Walter Gautschi, an admirable and outstanding scientist and gentleman.     

Excimer laser processing as a tool for photocatalytic design of sol-gel TiO2 thin films

Nanostructured sol-gel TiO₂ thin films spin coated on silicate glass plates are subjected to excimer (KrF^*) pulsed laser irradiation in order to tailor their structure and photocatalytic properties. The surface morphology of virgin and laser-processed films are followed applying electron optical imaging and atomic force microscopy. The evolution of the surface roughness and pore formation are shown to be accompanied by optical absorption edge shift to infrared wavelength range. Conventional X-ray diffraction analysis and high-resolution transmission electron imaging are applied in order to obtain information on the phase composition. Co-existence of amorphous and anatase TiO₂ phases in nonirradiated sol-gel films is found. It is established that after laser processing the most intense XRD anatase peak is shifted to lower 2θ range. The analysis of high-resolution transmission electron images of film profiles evidences for the laser induced phase transitions. Formation of rutile and brookite TiO₂ accompanied by evolution of oxygen deficient Ti_nO_2n−1 phases are identified in the subsurface region. The contribution of laser processing for increasing the photocatalytic efficiency of laser-modified films toward the oxidation of methylene blue water solution is demonstrated. The results obtained reveal a novel-processing route for designing sol-gel titania films with improved photocatalytical activity.     

Capillary electrophoretic chiral separation of Cinchona alkaloids using a cyclodextrin selector

A new capillary electrophoretic method for the chiral separation of four major Cinchona alkaloids (quinine/quinidine and cinchonine/cinchonidine) was developed using heptakis-(2,6-di-O-methyl)-beta-cyclodextrin as the chiral selector. The inner walls of the separation capillary were modified with a thin polyacrylamide layer, which substantially reduced the electroosmotic flow and improved the chiral resolution and the reproducibility of the migration time of the analytes. Various operation parameters were optimised, including the pH, the capillary temperature, the concentration of the background electrolyte, and the concentration of the chiral selector. Baseline separation of the two diastereomer pairs was achieved in 12 minutes in ammonium acetate background electrolyte pH 5.0 with addition of cyclodextrin in a concentration of 3 mM or higher.     

Polycyclic ethers and an unexpected dearomatisation reaction during studies towards the bioactive alkaloid,perophoramidine

The bioactive alkaloid natural product perophoramidine and the related family of compounds known as the communesins have inspired the synthesis community for more than a decade. Many of the elegant approaches have required the synthesis of complex intermediates that have not always reacted in the expected manner. In this study we describe a series of cyclic ether-containing precursors that were prepared during our synthetic studies towards these natural products. Attempts to open the cyclic ether ring and trap the resulting stabilised carbocation with a carbon nucleophile ultimately led to the preparation of a diallyl-substituted all carbon quaternary centre. Subsequent attempts to differentiate between the two allyl groups resulted in a relatively clean transformation to an unexpected compound. Extensive structural characterisation, including small molecule X-ray crystallography, showed that a dearomatisation reaction had occurred.     

Alkali Metal Arenides as a Universal Synthetic Tool for Layered 2D Germanene Modification

The rediscovery of graphene in 2004 has started an enormous chase in the research of 2D materials. A new family of layered 2D materials consisting of the 14th group elements beyond carbon has already been reported. Here, a new methodology in germanene chemistry is presented using germanane (Ge₆H₆) as a stable and easily accessible starting material for effective synthesis of novel germanene derivatives. The modification procedure utilizing strong bases—alkali metal arenides—for deprotonation of germanane and its subsequent functionalization with p‐nitrobenzyl bromide is described. Functionalization of germanene is confirmed by FT‐IR, Raman, and XPS spectroscopy as well as by X‐ray diffraction analysis.     

FLOW PROPERTIES OF COHESIVE NANOPOWDERS

The fundamentals of cohesive powder consolidation and flow behaviour using a reasonable combination of particle and continuum mechanics are explained.By means of the model “stiff particles with soft contacts”,the influence of elastic-plastic repulsion in particle contacts is demonstrated.With this as the physical basis,the stationary yield locus,instantaneous yield loci and consolidation loci,flow function and compression function are presented.The flow properties of a very cohesive titania nanopowder (ds=200nm) are shown.These models are used to evaluate shear cell test results as constitutive functions for computer aided apparatus design for reliable powder flow.     

Chaotic particle motion under linear surface waves

We investigate the motion of infinitesimal particles in the flow field inside the fluid under a traveling surface wave. It is shown that, even for two-dimensional waves, a superposition of two or more traveling harmonic waves is enough to generate chaotic particle motion, i.e., Lagrangian chaos. (c) 1996 American Institute of Physics.