Experimental realization of linear-optical partial swap gates

We present a linear-optical implementation of a class of two-qubit partial SWAP gates for polarization states of photons. Different gate operations, including the SWAP and entangling sqrt[SWAP], can be obtained by changing a classical control parameter, namely, the path difference in the interferometer. Reconstruction of output states, full quantum process tomography, and an evaluation of entanglement of formation prove very good performance of the gates.     

The kinetics of solid-phase microextraction measured for freshly added and aged hydrophobic compounds in two different soils

The proper choice of exposure times is critical if the freely dissolved concentration of chemicals in soil porewater is to be measured via the equilibrium solid-phase microextraction (SPME) as the times to equilibrium may vary depending on compound and soil properties. To reveal the effects of compound hydrophobicity, ageing and soil organic matter content on times to equilibrium, the SPME uptake was measured for five freshly added and aged hydrophobic organic compounds (phenanthrene, pyrene, lindane, p,p′-DDT and polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) 153) in two contrasted soils (arable and forest soil). The tested compound-soil systems behaved kinetically different. Longer equilibrium times were observed with increasing hydrophobicity of compounds for aged compared to freshly added chemicals and for the forest soil in comparison to the arable soil. The calculated soil–porewater partition coefficients (i.e. sorption coefficients, K_d) of chemicals differed between soil types mainly due to various organic carbon (OC) contents as evidenced by the comparable K_oc values (i.e. K_d values normalised to soil OC content). Similar K_oc values were also found with the various extent of ageing, indicating that both the freshly added and aged compounds linearly partitioned between the soil organic matter and porewater. Our results suggest that, for a respective compound, variations in equilibrium times may be expected depending upon the residence time and the organic matter content in soil where the longest equilibrium times seems to appear for a combination of aged compounds and high organic soils. With regard to this outcome, the effect of the level of sample depletion due to the SPME extraction (LD_SPME) on equilibrium times was assessed. At LDs_SPME of up to 10%, equilibrium times increases linearly with LDs_SPME for p,p′-DDT and PCB 153. For phenanthrene (LD_SPME<10%), and for lindane and pyrene (1.2% < LD_SPME > 40%), no clear relationships were observed.     

Cyanine-Flavonol Hybrids for Near-Infrared Light-Activated Delivery of Carbon Monoxide

Carbon monoxide (CO) is an endogenous signaling molecule that controls a number of physiological processes. To circumvent the inherent toxicity of CO, light-activated CO-releasing molecules (photoCORMs) have emerged as an alternative for its administration. However, their wider application requires photoactivation using biologically benign visible and near-infrared (NIR) light. In this work, a strategy to access such photoCORMs by fusing two CO-releasing flavonol moieties with a NIR-absorbing cyanine dye is presented. These hybrids liberate two molecules of CO in high chemical yields upon activation with NIR light up to 820 nm and exhibit excellent uncaging cross-sections, which surpass the state-of-the-art by two orders of magnitude. Furthermore, the biocompatibility and applicability of the system in vitro and in vivo are demonstrated, and a mechanism of CO release is proposed. It is hoped that this strategy will stimulate the discovery of new classes of photoCORMs and accelerate the translation of CO-based phototherapy into practice.     

Hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography method for the determination of ascorbic acid

Hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography (HILIC) method using internal standard for the determination and stability study of ascorbic acid was developed. HILIC method was very fast and simple using the following analytical conditions: ZIC HILIC (150 x 2.1 mm, 3.5 microm) chromatographic column and mobile phase composed of ACN and 50 mM ammonium acetate buffer pH 6.8 (78:22 v/v). Diode array detection was performed and chromatograms were processed at 268 nm, the maximum wavelength of absorbance of ascorbic acid. An extensive stability study of ascorbic acid as a function of various factors including temperature, stabilizing agents, oxygen presence and its concentration in solution was performed in order to gain information about the quantitative influence of individual stability factors. Low temperature and stabilizing agents (o-phosphoric acid and oxalic acid) were found to be key factors enabling substantial enhancement of the stability of ascorbic acid.     

Synthesis of perylene-3,4-mono(dicarboximide)--fullerene C60 dyads as new light-harvesting systems

Fullerene C 60-perylene-3,4-mono(dicarboximide) (C 60-PMI) dyads 1- 3 were synthesized in the search for new light-harvesting systems. The synthetic strategy to the PMI intermediate used a cross-coupling Suzuki reaction for the introduction of a formyl group in the ortho, meta, or para position. Subsequent 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition with C 60 led to the target C 60-PMI dyad. Cyclic voltammetry showed that the first one-electron reduction process unambiguously occurs onto the C 60 moiety and the following two-electron process corresponds to the concomitant second reduction of C 60 and the first reduction of PMI. A quasi-quantitative quenching of fluorescence was shown in dyads 1- 3, and an intramolecular energy transfer was suggested to occur from the PMI to the fullerene moiety. These C 60-PMI dyads constitute good candidates for future photovoltaic applications with expected well-defined roles for both partners, i.e., PMI acting as a light-harvesting antenna and C 60 playing the role of the acceptor in the photoactive layer.     

Development of palladium-carbene catalysts for telomerization and dimerization of 1,3-dienes: from basic research to industrial applications

The following account summarises recent developments in the area of palladium-catalysed telomerisation and dimerisation reactions of 1,3-dienes. The most active types of catalyst, palladium-carbene complexes, were tested in pilot plant and proved to be industrially viable.     

Biocompatible Size‐Defined Dendrimer–Albumin Binding Protein Hybrid Materials as a Versatile Platform for Biomedical Applications

For the design of a biohybrid structure as a ligand‐tailored drug delivery system (DDS), it is highly sophisticated to fabricate a DDS based on smoothly controllable conjugation steps. This article reports on the synthesis and the characterization of biohybrid conjugates based on noncovalent conjugation between a multivalent biotinylated and PEGylated poly(amido amine) (PAMAM) dendrimer and a tetrameric streptavidin‐small protein binding scaffold. This protein binding scaffold (SA‐ABDwt) possesses nM affinity toward human serum albumin (HSA). Thus, well‐defined biohybrid structures, finalized by binding of one or two HSA molecules, are available at each conjugation step in a controlled molar ratio. Overall, these biohybrid assemblies can be used for (i) a controlled modification of dendrimers with the HSA molecules to increase their blood‐circulation half‐life and passive accumulation in tumor; (ii) rendering dendrimers a specific affinity to various ligands based on mutated ABD domain, thus replacing tedious dendrimer–antibody covalent coupling and purification procedures.