Experimental and theoretical charge density distribution of the colossal magnetoresistive transition metal sulfide FeCr2S4

The total charge density distribution rho(r) of the colossal magnetoresistive transition metal sulfide FeCr(2)S(4) was evaluated through a multipole formalism from a set of structure factors obtained both experimentally, by means of single crystal high-quality x-ray diffraction data collected at T=23 K, and theoretically, with an extended-basis unrestricted Hartree-Fock periodic calculation on the experimental geometry. A full topological analysis, followed by the calculation of local energy density values and net atomic charges, was performed using the quantum theory of atoms in molecules. The experimental and theoretical results were compared. Good agreement was found for the topological properties of the system, as well as for the atomic net charges and the nature of the chemical bonds. An analysis of the electron density rho(r), its Laplacian nabla(2)[rho(r)], and the total energy density H(r) at the bond critical points was employed to classify all the interactions that resulted as predominantly closed shell (ionic) in nature. The topological indicators of the bonded interactions for Fe are distinct from those for Cr. The Fe-S bond distances were found to be 0.145 A shorter than the ideal values computed on the basis of Shannon's crystal radii, much shorter than the Cr-S distances with respect to their ideal Shannon lengths. Concomitantly, rho(r) and |H(r)| at the bond critical points are greater for Fe-S interactions, indicating that the local concentration of charge density in the internuclear region is larger for the tetrahedrally coordinated iron than for the octahedrally coordinated chromium. The isosurface in the real space for nabla(2)[rho(r)]=0 was plotted for both iron and chromium, pointing out the local zones of valence shell charge concentration and relating them to the partial d-orbital occupancy of the two transition metal atoms.     

Accelerating molecular modeling applications with graphics processors

Molecular mechanics simulations offer a computational approach to study the behavior of biomolecules at atomic detail, but such simulations are limited in size and timescale by the available computing resources. State-of-the-art graphics processing units (GPUs) can perform over 500 billion arithmetic operations per second, a tremendous computational resource that can now be utilized for general purpose computing as a result of recent advances in GPU hardware and software architecture. In this article, an overview of recent advances in programmable GPUs is presented, with an emphasis on their application to molecular mechanics simulations and the programming techniques required to obtain optimal performance in these cases. We demonstrate the use of GPUs for the calculation of long-range electrostatics and nonbonded forces for molecular dynamics simulations, where GPU-based calculations are typically 10-100 times faster than heavily optimized CPU-based implementations. The application of GPU acceleration to biomolecular simulation is also demonstrated through the use of GPU-accelerated Coulomb-based ion placement and calculation of time-averaged potentials from molecular dynamics trajectories. A novel approximation to Coulomb potential calculation, the multilevel summation method, is introduced and compared with direct Coulomb summation. In light of the performance obtained for this set of calculations, future applications of graphics processors to molecular dynamics simulations are discussed.     

Electrospray ionization mass spectrometric characterization of key Te(IV) cationic intermediates for the addition of TeCl4 to alkynes

Tellurium tetrachloride adds to alkynes via two pathways: a concerted syn-addition that yields Z-tri- and -tetrasubstituted alkenes or an anti-addition that yields E-alkenes. The mechanistic aspects of these divergent pathways for TeCl4 addition to alkynes have been investigated by on-line electrospray ionization (tandem) mass spectrometry (ESI-MS(/MS)). Via ESI-MS(/MS), we have been able to intercept and characterize the active electrophile TeCl3+ in tetrahydrofuran (THF) solutions of TeCl4, as well as its THF complex and several TeClx(OH)y+ derivatives. For the first time, also, key Te(IV) cationic intermediates of the electrophilic addition of TeCl4 to alkynes were captured for gas-phase MS investigation. The detailed structural data of cyclic tellurane intermediates intercepted herein seems to provide insights into the coordinative behavior of the Te(IV) atom and its mode of action towards biological targets.     

Nuclear electric quadrupole moment of gold

The nuclear quadrupole moment for (197)Au has been determined on the base of the state-of-art relativistic molecular calculations. The experimental shifts in the nuclear coupling constants in the series of molecules AuF, XeAuF, KrAuF, ArAuF, (OC)AuF, and AuH have been combined with highly accurate determinations of the electric field gradient (EFG) at the gold nucleus, obtained by molecular relativistic Dirac-Coulomb-Gaunt Hartree-Fock calculations. The electronic correlation contribution to the EFG is included with the CCSD(T) and CCSD-T approaches, also in the four-component framework, using a finite-difference method. In order to estimate the accuracy of their approach the authors have thoroughly investigated the convergence of the results with respect to the basis set employed and the size of the correlated orbital space. The effect of the full Breit electron-electron interaction on the nuclear quadrupole moment of gold has also been considered explicitly for the AuF molecule. They obtain for (197)Au a nuclear quadrupole moment of 510+/-15 mb, which deviates by about 7% from the currently accepted muonic value.     

Nanoscale conformational ordering in polyanilines investigated by SAXS and AFM

Understanding the adsorption mechanisms in nanostructured polymer films has become crucial for their use in technological applications, since film properties vary considerably with the experimental conditions utilized for film fabrication. In this paper, we employ small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) to investigate solutions of polyanilines and correlate the chain conformations with morphological features of the nanostructured films obtained with atomic force microscopy (AFM). It is shown that aggregates formed already in solution affect the film morphology; in particular, at early stages of adsorption film morphology appears entirely governed by the chain conformation in solution and adsorption of aggregates. We also use SAXS data for modeling poly(o-ethoxyaniline) (POEA) particle shape through an ab initio procedure based on simulated annealing using the dummy atom model (DAM), which is then compared to the morphological features of POEA films fabricated with distinct pHs and doping acids. Interestingly, when the derivative POEA is doped with p-toluene sulfonic acid (TSA), the resulting films exhibit a fibrillar morphology-seen with atomic force microscopy and transmission electron microscopy-that is consistent with the cylindrical shape inferred from the SAXS data. This is in contrast with the globular morphology observed for POEA films doped with other acids.     

Non-ionic contributions to the electric-field gradient at 111Cd/181Ta impurities in bixbyites

The electric-field-gradient (EFG) tensor at both cation sites of the bixbyite structure in ¹⁸¹Hf-implanted Lu- and Sm-sesquioxides was determined by the PAC technique. The cumulated EFG data at Ta-impurity sites in binary oxides enable us to discuss the “universal” character of the empirical correlation between local and ionic contributions to the EFG in these systems. An EFG factorization in terms of the electronic characteristics of the probe and the geometry of the cation coordination is proposed, which explains the experimental EFG results at Ta/Cd impurity sites in bixbyites and agrees with a simplified decomposition of the EFG valence contribution coming from ab-initio calculations. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Kinetics and mechanism of the aminolysis of O‐phenyl 4‐nitrophenyl dithiocarbonate in aqueous ethanol

The reactions of the title substrate (1) with a series of secondary alicyclic amines are subjected to a kinetic investigation in 44 wt% ethanol‐water, at 25.0°C, ionic strength 0.2 M (KCl). Under amine excess over the substrate, pseudo‐first‐order rate coefficients (k_obs) are obtained. Plots of k_obs against [NH], where NH is the free amine, are nonlinear upwards, except the reactions of piperidine, which show linear plots. According to the kinetic results and the analysis of products, a reaction scheme is proposed with two tetrahedral intermediates, one zwitterionic (T^±) and another anionic (T⁻), with a kinetically significant proton transfer from T^± to an amine to yield T⁻ (k₃ step). By nonlinear least‐squares fitting of an equation derived from the scheme to the experimental points, the rate microcoefficients involved in the reactions are determined. Comparison of the kinetics of the title reactions with the linear k_obs vs. [NH] plots found in the same aminolysis of O‐ethyl 4‐nitrophenyl dithiocarbonate (2) in the same solvent shows that the rate coefficient for leaving group expulsion from T^± (k₂) is larger for 2 due to a stronger push by EtO than PhO. The k₃ value is the same for both reactions since both proton transfers are diffusion controlled. Comparison of the title reactions with the same aminolysis of phenyl 4‐nitrophenyl thionocarbonate (3) in water indicates that (i) the k₂ value is larger for the aminolysis of 1 due to the less basic nucleofuge involved and the small solvent effect on k₂, (ii) the k₃ value is smaller for the reactions of 1 due to the more viscous solvent, (iii) the rate coefficient for amine expulsion from T^± (k₋₁) is larger for the aminolysis of 1 than that of 3 due to a solvent effect, and (iv) the value of the rate coefficient for amine attack (k₁) is smaller for the aminolysis of 1 in aqueous ethanol, which can be explained by a predominant solvent effect relative to the electron‐withdrawing effect from the nucleofuge. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Int J Chem Kinet 31: 839–845, 1999