Facile one‐step fabrication of highly transparent and flexible superhydrophobic substrate by room‐temperature ion irradiation method

Highly transparent (transparency 96.5%), flexible and antireflective superhydrophobic (water contact angle >150°) surfaces have been fabricated at room temperature by the ion irradiation method. This one‐step fabrication route was fairly easy to carry out without any heat or chemical treatment and can be completed within few seconds. This novel chemical free fabricating strategy could be extended to numerous polymeric substrates to achieve transparent and flexible superhydrophobic structures for their potential applications in diverse fields. (© 2012 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Polarization Rotation in the Monoclinic Perovskite BiCo(1-x) Fe(x) O(3)

The monoclinic perovskite BiCo(1-x) Fe(x) O(3) (x≈0.7) undergoes a second-order structural transition from tetragonal to monoclinic, which is accompanied by a rotation of the polarization vector from the [001] to [111] directions of a pseudo cubic cell. The crystal structure, determined by electron diffraction and powder synchrotron X-ray diffraction, was the same as that of Pb(Ti(1-x) Zr(x) )O(3) at the morphotropic phase boundary.     

Wide-Range 2D Lattice Correlation Unveiled for Columnarly Assembled Triphenylene Hexacarboxylic Esters

Dipole bridge: Liquid-crystalline (LC) triphenylenes self-assemble columnarly into a hexagonal geometry with a wide-range 2D lattice correlation, for which distal and proximal dipole-dipole interactions are considered responsible. By virtue of the strong intercolumnar interaction, the LC columns of the triphenylene can spontaneously align homeotropically on the 12 different substrates examined (POM=polarized optical microscopy).     

Avron–Herbst Type Formula in Crossed Constant Magnetic and Time-Dependent Electric Fields

In this paper, we give an Avron?CHerbst type formula for the propagator generated by the free Hamiltonian with crossed constant magnetic and time-dependent electric fields. As an application of the formula, we give a result of the existence of the wave operators under some appropriate conditions on the time-dependent electric field and the potential. Finally, in the case where the electric field is time-independent, we consider the problem of the asymptotic completeness of the wave operators.     

Reversible photoswitching of the coordination numbers of silicon in organosilicon compounds bearing a 2-(phenylazo)phenyl group

Several organosilicon compounds bearing a 2-(phenylazo)phenyl group were synthesized from the corresponding chlorosilanes and 2-lithioazobenzene prepared by halogen-lithium transmetalation of 2-iodoazobenzene. Their structures were determined by (1)H, (13)C, (19)F, and (29)Si NMR spectra, UV-vis spectra, and X-ray crystallographic analyses. In the UV-vis spectra, silyl groups caused red shifts of both the n-pi and pi-pi transitions of the azo group compared with the transitions of the unsubstituted azobenzene. The E-isomers of the fluorosilanes showed an intramolecular interaction between a nitrogen atom of the azo group and the silicon atom, leading their intermediate structures between a distorted trigonal bipyramidal structure and a tetrahedral structure around the silicon atoms, which were revealed by the X-ray crystallographic analyses and the NMR spectra. On the other hand, silanes without fluorine atoms showed tetrahedral structures in the absence of such an interaction. The photoirradiation of the E-isomers of the fluorosilanes afforded reversibly the corresponding Z-isomers in good yields. The silicon atoms of the Z-isomers were found to be tetracoordinate in the absence of Si-N interactions by the (29)Si NMR spectra. The coordination numbers of the silicon atom of the fluorosilanes were reversibly switched between four and five by photoirradiation. These properties were compared to those of a tetrafluoro[2-(phenylazo)phenyl]silicate.     

Systematic study on the structures and reactivity of hydrazobenzenes and azobenzenes bearing a chalcogenophosphoryl group

Hydrazobenzenes 3-5 bearing a chalcogenophosphoryl group were synthesized by palladium-catalyzed cross-coupling reactions. Their X-ray crystallographic analyses and NMR and IR spectra showed the presence of intramolecular hydrogen bonds between the N-H protons and the chalcogenophosphoryl groups. The intermolecular hydrogen bonds in phosphine oxide 3 and selenide 5 were observed in the solid state. Phosphine oxide 3, sulfide 4, and selenide 5 constructed a dimeric structure, a discrete monomeric structure, and a chain structure, respectively. As the chalcogen atom changed, the crystalline structures of the 2-chalcogenophosphorylhydrazobenzenes also changed. The hydrogen bonds affected the oxidation reactions of the hydrazobenzenes, and oxidation of hydrazobenzenes bearing a lighter chalcogen atom was more difficult. For azobenzenes bearing a chalcogenophosphoryl group, X-ray crystallographic analyses and NMR spectra showed little interaction between the azo group and the chalcogenophosphoryl groups. However, in the UV-vis spectra, the red shifts of the absorption maxima due to the n --> pi transitions indicated intramolecular interactions in the excited state, in contrast to the corresponding 4-substituted azobenzenes. In addition, photoirradiation of phosphine oxide (E)-7 gave (Z)-7, whereas that of phosphine sulfide (E)-8 and phosphine selenide (E)-9 did not give (Z)-8 and (Z)-9, suggesting that heavy chalcogen atoms quench excited states by through-space interactions. Introduction of a chalcogenophosphoryl group at the 2-position had a significant effect on the structure, spectral properties, and reactivity of hydrazobenzenes and azobenzenes. Although azobenzene (E)-10 bearing a hydroxyphosphoryl group at the 2-position did not show hydrogen bonding in the crystalline state, its optical properties and photoisomerization ratio were different from those of (E)-7.     

2D hydrogen-bonded square-grid coordination networks with a substitution-active metal site

Reported here is the preparation and property of 2D coordination networks composed of rodlike ligands with ethylene glycol side chains (1). Two 2D coordination networks, [[Co(1)2(H2O)2](NO3)2.1.5H2O]n and [[Ni(1)2(H(2)O)2](NO3)2.1.5H2O]n, have been synthesized and characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction, TG, DSC, UV-vis spectroscopy, and magnetic measurements. The structural analyses clarified that infinite 1D hydrogen-bond arrays composed of ethylene glycol chains contribute to the stabilization of 2D coordination frameworks, keeping the environment of substitution-active metal sites unchanged. They are more stable than a similar square-grid coordination network that does not possess an ethylene glycol chain on the ligand. We also succeeded in the direct observation of a reversible apical-ligand-exchange reaction at the cobalt(II) and nickel(II) ions in a single-crystal-to-single-crystal fashion because of the considerable stability as well as moderate flexibility of the framework. The cobalt-containing coordination network crystal showed chromic behavior depending on temperatures. Crystallographic and spectroscopic studies revealed that the color change of the crystal was attributed to the ligand-exchange process between H2O and a NO3 anion on the cobalt metal. Magnetic measurements indicated weak antiferromagnetic nearest-neighbor spin coupling between cobalt(II) ions.